Faint
by shi-chan
Summary: YAOI Genma was just your ordinary single overworked jounin until he had an entire pitcher ful of coffee spilt on him by Iruka. With nasty minor burns, Genma finds himself falling for Iruka. Inexperienced with love, what is poor Genma to do? COMPLETE
1. Part 1 Spill

A sudden spur-in-the-moment-plot-bunny attacked me and this came along! GenIru! Personally, I think Genma and Iruka looks very cute together! Judging by the number of rather surprised and positive reviews I got from the mention of GenIru pairing in my KakaNaru fic, "Why Not?" I decided to write this. I like this pairing and hopefully you guys will too. I will be focusing more on the "paperwork" issue here that all shinobis has to go through one point of the other. Also, I will try my best to make this an Angst-Romance-Comedy jig. Try is the keyword.

There is a part here that will be a parody of a fic I previously read of another fandom. Anyway, I'll give a mention about it once it comes along. A big thank you to my beta-reader, Ravenshaelo who also likes this pairing! Salute her minna!

On with the show!

**FAINT 1 **Genma had gone home that autumn afternoon earlier than usual without any intention of doing so. It had been a awful day for him. He was tired, he did not get much sleep and he just really wanted to take a nice long break_. Well_, he thought with a sour smirk, _I got my break after all_. He stripped off his coffee-drenched vest and the rest of his soaked clothes and tossed them into his washing machine. He stood in front of the mirror and stared at the blistering skin on his chest and his entire left arm. The coffee had been scalding hot and newly brewed.Genma made a clicking noise with his tongue as he stared at the screaming redness glowing from his lightly tanned skin."Damn. These things hurt like a bitch." He grumbled and grabbed his towel to take a cold shower. He was a bit sticky from the coffee and he really felt like he was a bag of coffee beans at the moment. He winced as he bent to undo the bindings of his calf-bandages and peeled off the stiff and starched-like state of his pants along with his underwear. He gingerly made his way into the bathroom, dropping off his forehead-protector-turned-bandana on the dressing table as he left the room. He turned the cold tap on and stepped under it, the blisters on his chest and arm seeming to sizzle under the cold spray. He shivered from the onslaught of coldness, skin prickling with goosebumps. The sizzling sensation began to disappear and he began his ritual of shampooing and soaping himself. As his fingers massaged his scalp, he felt a smirk cross his lips as he remembered what happened earlier that day.Flashback

_  
__He was playing a nice round of poker with Raido in the teacher's lounge when nature called. He could never win against Raido who seemed to have a natural-flowing luck behind him for it was already the eighth game and he'd lost twenty bucks. Sighing, he slapped down his cards in defeat while Raido collected his winning dollar. _

_  
__"Twenty-one bucks! That means lunch for three days! We should really do this more often." Raido said, grinning and rubbing the scar on his face. _

_  
__"Don't get your hopes up." Genma commented off-handedly. He let out a yawn, covering it half-heartedly. He felt dead on his feet and felt like just slumping on the table_ _and going to sleep. The shower of missions coming in high numbers had finally taken its toll on him. During the first week and a half, he didn't mind at all, for he got exercised and – as he would normally put it – 'feel the thrill of the hunt'. But now? He just wished the missions would stop coming. He needed sleep and some good time to unwind. _

_  
__"Man, you're really beat." Raido said, staring at his comrade and friend. _

_  
__"I feel like shit." Genma replied sleepily, stifling another yawn. "Be right back. I need the bathroom." _

_  
__Raido waved a hand and began to shuffle the cards with flashy moves. "Splash some water on your face. You look like you're going to fall asleep soon. Don't forget about substitution today in the field. You should probably stop for some coffee. Those brats really get to you, you know? You're going to be dealing with them today and tomorrow." he said, flipping cards. _

_  
__Genma merely rolled his eyes. "Yeah, okay." He drawled, shifting the needle he chewed on in between his lips. He shoved his hands in to his pockets and exited himself through the sliding wooden doors, walking at a calm pace towards the men's restrooms. He really didn't need the restroom that badly and the need was there indeed, but it was more to slap some cold or warm water on his face to wake him up a bit. A sigh made its way out of his lips as he let his senses down for a moment. He really wished he hadn't, for in that particular moment, one of the chuunin teachers was walking in the same hallway towards the opposite direction and two kids came running at the same time. _

_  
__Everything happened in a blink of an eye. The chuunin carried an arm full of folders while in his other hand he held the glass 'kettle' of the coffee-maker filled with steaming coffee. He was knocked off his balance by the running duo who were completely oblivious to what they had just done and disappeared around the corner at the end of the hall. The poor teacher tripped and sent folders flying and the liquid contents of the pyrex glass pitcher emptied itself on Genma. _

_  
__A painful cry left his lips, the needle he was chewing on falling to the ground along with the soggy folders and paper. He let out heavy breaths as he desperately tried to block the burning sensation. Curses left his lips involuntarily._

_  
__"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" He hissed, the smell of coffee dazing him. _

_  
__The poor chuunin was so shocked and flustered by what he felt was his fault. "Oh my god!" The stammering chuunin managed to say. "I'm so sorry! I'm very sorry! I didn't see you!" _

_  
__"Forget it, you idiot!" Genma snapped and poor young man that he knew as Iruka stopped and looked at him with guilt and hurt and helplessness all at one time. He was tired and exhausted and he had an entire boiling pitcher of coffee poured – though accidentally – on him, what on earth did the chuunin expect? A smile? __  
__"Ugh! Fuck!" Genma hissed one more time and did a simple ice-based jutsu to cool down the burning sensation he was feeling. Iruka had his head dipped in shame, berating himself for being a poor-excuse-for-a-ninja. _

_  
__Raido heard the commotion and had peeked through the door to find Genma leaning against the wall, face in a painful wince and Iruka, the teacher whom he only knew by name on the ground, where soggy papers and folders littered the floor. _

_  
__"What happened?" Raido asked, looking at Genma. "You okay?" _

_  
__"I'm fine!" Genma snapped. "Find someone else to fill in for me in the field. I'm going home." Genma hissed and left the duo making his way down the hallways fast. _

_  
__Genma caught a glimpse of the Iruka-fellow gathering soggy papers while Raido bent down to help him. _

End FlashbackGenma sighed and turned the shower off after he rinsed himself of the soapsuds. Iruka the chuunin teacher. Genma heard about him from other jounins and chuunins that he knew personally, and they all said that he was an all around sweet and annoyingly nice and polite person. Genma shook his head and pulled out his toothbrush. The 'burned' area on his chest and arm were now a very dark red. He winced at the sight of it as he brushed his teeth. He then applied some medical cream, the cold feeling on the skin making him a cringe a bit.He dressed up and dropped down to his bed, lying on his back, throwing an arm over his face. He trusted Raido to give an excuse for his absence. It was only three in the afternoon. A little nap wouldn't hurt.Genma closed his eyes and wondered if Raido got stuck with the kids.Genma slept the entire evening like a baby. He woke up at eight in the morning the next day, feeling good. He sat up and winced slightly as he was reminded of the coffee-burns. He looked under the loose sleeveless white shirt he was wearing and twisted his lips at the sight of his skin all dried up. A string of curses left his lips as he pulled himself off the bed to get ready for the day. He showered, applied more cream on his burns, dressed up and was about to have a cup of coffee but settled for a bottled energy drink instead. Somehow, the idea of coming anywhere near coffee made him feel rather pissed off on such a cloudy day.He tossed the empty bottle of blackcurrant flavor drink and grabbed a chicken sandwich wrapped up nicely in its plastic pack and tossed it in to the microwave. Genma was not a good cook and relied on his sandwiches as source of food. He paid a fair and decent amount to the lady across his building to supply him with sandwiches everyday. They were very nicely made sandwiches and he really liked them – well seasoned, just the right amount of pickles and mayonnaise. The microwave beeped and he took out his breakfast and sank his teeth into the sandwich, giving out a pleasured 'hmm-hmm' as he chewed on the treat. That done, he headed for the academy where he had to tackle some paperwork and then take on the duty of field training for the little kids later on in the afternoon.The moment he entered the office, he let out a small groan at the sight of the folders on his desk. He clicked his tongue, nibbling on his needle, took a seat behind his desk, started sifting through the folders and began his tedious task of reporting and filing. He was alone in the office until ten o'clock struck and other jounins and chuunins poured in, tackling their fair share of paperwork. Unlike other Jounins, Genma prided himself with his time. He preferred to get things done and over with so that he could have some free time for himself in between his tasks for the day. Just as lunch struck, he finished his load of paperwork and leaned back against his chair, propping his feet on the table and enjoying his lunch, which was another sandwich. He watched with a look of boredom on his charming face as people came in and out of the office dropping off folders into a box on one of the tables. Genma rarely did paperwork since missions were given to him due to his skills and ability. He felt sorry for whoever had to do that boxful of work.Once three thirty struck, Genma made his way to the academy field where a group of five year olds were running around. Genma clicked his tongue and pulled out a whistle that Anko had given him to use the other day. One blow and the kids turned their little heads in his direction. "Right, listen you little twits. I'm not in a good mood, I'm tired, I haven't slept in days and I really, really would appreciate it if you cooperate so that we can all be happy okay?" One of the kids sniggered and burst in to fits of giggles. "Right, you and the one beside you. Run around the field till sunset. If you stop, I'll make you run around Konoha twice and no dinner!" The two stiffened and did their laps around the field without daring to do anything stupid. As the two young boys ran around the field, scowls on their little faces. He gave a smirk and turned to the group in front of him. "So what did Raido tell you guys to do yesterday?""Iruka-sensei took us for field training yesterday." One of the kids piped up."Who's Raido?" Another asked.Genma could feel a headache coming. "Never mind. So what did Iruka-sensei tell you kids to do?"Iruka sighed at the sight of the box by his desk. It was filled with files. "They didn't even bother putting them in properly." He mumbled out. He had just finished filing mission reports for the Hokage and he really was very tired. He went home late the other evening because of the delayed work.He tiredly lifted the heavy box onto the table and began to take the folders out one by one. He then arranged them according to their numbers and placed them in the box properly. It was already eight in the evening and he still had a stack of quiz papers to grade and several homework-scrolls to check. He lifted a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, willing the migraine that he was currently being tortured with to go away. He was somewhat thankful that the next day was a weekend. He could stay up late and not worry about waking up early or duty-calls the next day. He carried the box to his classroom, switching the office lights off as he made his away across the lawn towards the academy and into his classroom.He dropped the box on the ground beside his table and took a seat, taking hold of one of the quiz papers and began to check it. Nearly everyone had gone home while those who were still either in the staff room or office were already leaving or locking up. It was not unusual for Iruka to stay late but it was becoming rather often nowadays. It was not like he was getting paid extra for doing extra work.Better than going home to an empty house, he thought bitterly. Hours flew by and soon the stack of quiz papers were marked and half the homework scrolls tackled. He set his marking pen down and stretched, feeling the bones in his back creak and suddenly winced as he felt the familiar pounding pain that his migraine tagged along with. He brought a hand to his head and pulled his head protector off and ponytail out before running his fingers through his scalp, lightly massaging it. After a few minutes of massaging his scalp he inhaled shakily and picked up his pen once more and tackled the scrolls before him. As soon as he was done with the scrolls, he pulled the contents of the box and placed it beside him, one by one calculating and writing finalized reports and stamping them with the "failed" or "completed" sign. Iruka robotically went through the folders, already long used to the smell of stamp-ink, the thin paper and mind-boggling numbers and points before him.It was in the ungodly hour of four thirty that he finally finished the last folder. He gave out a yawn and shakily got to his feet, placing the folders into the box and heading for the 'data-room' where all mission reports according to dates completed were kept. He placed the proper folders in their proper drawers according to mission ranks and headed back to the office, placed the box by his desk and made sure that all the lights and electrical appliances were switched off.By the time he showered, dressed and fell on his bed, it was five-fifteen in the morning and the first few hints of the suns rays were peeking out from the horizon.Genma had a meeting with the Hokage and he was waiting patiently for the beautiful lady-hokage to show up. There were quite a number of jounins at the meeting. It was about security reasons and how missions were now on the decline. The meeting lasted for an hour, along with queries and suggestions given by several shinobi. Genma caught sight of Raido standing near the window and when the meeting ended, he pulled the scarred man aside and asked him outright."Who took my place with the kids the other day?" Genma asked, wanting to make sure."Iruka did." Raido answered, giving him a grin. "Why?""Just asking. Why did he anyway?""Because he was the only one who volunteered to do it since no one was free to take your spot." Raido shrugged. "I had to do a B-classed mission with Shizune last night. Did you stay up late at the academy last night?""No. I went home at around eleven-thirty like others normally do." He said, raising a slender eyebrow. "Why?""Shizune and I got back pretty late last night. Around three or something. Someone stayed up late last night." Raido gave out a little laugh. "Who in their right minds would stay up that late doing work?" Genma wondered about the same thing."Iruka did." A female Jounin called Maya said, who was passing by and overheard their conversation. "I saw him this morning as I was preparing to jog. It was about five I think."Genma's mind went blank at Maya's words who was now flirting with Raido who had a blush on his cheeks. Genma left the two on their own and went to do his gate-watch duty for the day. As he stood at his post, chewing on his needle, he couldn't help but think about Iruka. He should probably thank the chuunin for taking his place in field practice.TBC


	2. Part 2 Worry

Just so to mention. This is actually a side-story to WHY NOT. What I mean is, this all takes place before Naruto leaves. So if you have any doubts, leave it in your reviews and I'll reply to it in the next chapter.

Anyway, a big thank you Ravenshaelo. She's so nice, Minna! I love this girl! NYA!

Well, I can safely say that this chapter is all right. Progress with relationship I mean. To quote Ravenshaelo – "Inexpressibly cute!"

Enjoy!

****

****

FAINT 2   
  
Iruka woke up at one thirty that day and felt like a wooden plank hit him repeatedly. He felt sore all over and he was dizzy. He gave a little sniff and sighed."Maybe I'm coming down with something." He grumbled to himself as he dragged himself awake. He still had a lot of things to do that day. He had laundry to wash, lessons to plan and groceries to buy. His fridge and cabinets had run out of food two days ago and he'd been living on ramen ever since. He loved ramen, but he wanted to eat something other than noodles soaked in warm broth.He showered and changed into his casual clothes and randomly sorted out his laundry to white and colored, tossing the whites into the washing machine and setting the timer. He then grabbed his keys and wallet and headed for the market to get his supplies. As he shopped, many of the children's parents greeted him who happened to be shopping too. Iruka gave them a bright smile, spoke to each parent with patience and warmth and told them of their child's progress.He exited the market about good two hours later, plastic bags in both his hands and slowly made his way home. He took a detour and entered his neighborhood when he felt a hand rest on his shoulder, startling him. He didn't even sense let alone hear the person approach him. The sudden contact made him jump a bit and drop the bag he held in his right hand, startlingly turning to look at the person behind him.His eyes widened and quickly dropped his gaze in respect. "Shiranui-san." He said and dipped his head in greeting.Genma took in the tired look of the shorter and younger chuunin before him. "I didn't mean to startle you.""Not your fault. I wasn't paying attention anyway." Iruka said and dropped to the ground to pick up the fallen green peppers that made their way out of the bag and placed them carefully back in. He felt embarrassed for acting like an academy student. He was a chuunin for crying out loud. He felt his cheeks color and the blood roar in his ears as he picked up the remaining vegetables that manage to escape the bag."Sorry." Genma said, placing the last green bell pepper into the bag."Don't worry about it, Shiranui-san." Iruka said and gave him a smile.Genma was about to say something when a sudden growling sound echoed between the two standing men. Iruka flushed redder than the tomatoes in one of his bags and felt like shrinking in to something smaller than an ant. Genma felt his lips tugging into a smile at the sight of the flustered chuunin before him."Pardon me." Iruka mumbled lifting the bags from the ground. "I – I skipped a few meals.""A few?" Genma asked, quirking an eyebrow. "Honestly?"Iruka gave him a smile. "It's nothing. I better get going." Iruka's eyes fell on his arm and chest. A look of guilty mortification came to his expression and he looked away in shame. "Is your-""It's fine. The medical cream I put on has healed it quite nicely." Genma said, which was true. The skin was peeling but it wasn't as painful as the other day. It was actually more tolerable now."I – I'm sorry. I really am." Iruka stuttered. Before Genma could reply. "I – I better go."Genma watched with a puzzled expression as Iruka hastily gave him a respectful bow and turned to jog down the road towards his apartment. Genma was about to turn when he spotted one of the peppers on the ground that Iruka must not have caught sight of. He picked it up and tossed it up in the air twice before turning the opposite direction.Iruka had gone home, stocked his supplies and then headed for the laundry room and emptied the whites from his washing machine, stuffed the colored ones in and set the timer. He went about hanging his clothes to dry before sitting at the dining table to begin planning his lessons for the next week. He finished at about five in the afternoon, hung the remainder of his laundry and went about preparing himself a nice dinner.He ate in silence, eyes looking around his little apartment that once belonged to his mother and father and felt the sadness creep up his spine. He shut his eyes and continued eating his dinner, in his mind the ghosts of his parents moved in the house. He let out a shaky sigh and began to clear up the dishes. The clouds outside were dark and lightning flashed above the peaceful village. Iruka grabbed his keys and decided to pay his respects. It's not like anyone at home expected him to stay.Genma slapped down his cards, sipping from his sake cup. "There! Ha! Hand it over, Raido." He said, taking the ten bucks from the scowling scarred man."Why are you winning today?" Raido asked."I don't know. The heavens love me?" Genma said, giving him a cheeky grin as he arranged the bills properly."I've been meaning to ask." Raido said, as he gathered the cards. "Why are you carrying a bell pepper with you?"Genma looked up at his friend then stared at the green pepper sitting innocently on the table they were playing poker on, right beside the sake jar. "Oh. I saw Iruka today.""Did you?" Raido asked, something in his tone that made Genma feel like throwing the pepper right at his face."Poor guy. He's so tensed up. He got startled when I patted him on the back, dropped his groceries and this little thing missed his gaze." He said tapping the pepper with a finger."It's a green pepper. A vegetable." Raido said, giving Genma a funny look. "It's not like your pet goldfish or something.""He dropped it." Genma shrugged, pouring himself some sake. As he sipped it, he caught sight of Raido giving him a funny look. "What?"Raido shook his head. "Nothing." He turned his head and found a familiar pony-tailed man walking down the streets in the mild rain that began to fall from the sky, hands in his pockets. "Hey, look. It's Iruka." Genma turned to look and caught sight of the chuunin. "Well? Go give him his pepper back." Raido was grinning like a lunatic at what he just said because it sounded ridiculously insane."Very funny Raido." Genma grumbled and looked on at Iruka who was getting further and further away amidst the throngs of people."I'm going home." Raido said, clearing up the cards and stuffing them into his nin-pouch and pushing his chair back, leaving a few bills on the table. "You know, you should really go and give him his pepper back. He might be sad because you took his pepper without permission." Genma threw Raido an evil look and this made the scarred man laugh even more. "Seriously. Go talk to him. He's a nice guy."Raido left the sake house, leaving a puzzled Genma who was now staring at the green pepper sitting innocently beside him on the table which seemed to be mocking him in all its green glory. Genma found it entirely ridiculous glaring at the green pepper."Oh what the hell?" He grumbled at the pepper and picked it up, tossed a few bills on the table and left the sake house.The rain was a mere drizzle, not something harsh and cold. Just a light and gentle spray that Iruka appreciated as he looked at the cenotaph on which his parents' names were engraved on. They were brave people, Iruka thought to himself. He knelt upon the marble surface and clapped his hand twice before closing his eyes and giving a little prayer. Visiting them always somewhat cured the loneliness inside him. Sometimes he would cry, sometimes he would smile, but of most the time, he came in tears. Just like that day. But like every time he visited, the tears would eventually subside and he'd just end up looking blankly at the cenotaph, then a smile would come to his face and he'd remember his mother's words telling him, "You are a strong ninja, Iruka. You must never give up even if you feel there's nothing left for fighting or living for. In the end, there's always something."He lifted his eyelids, stood, dipped his head in respect and turned to head back for home. He was walking down the pathway that lead to the cenotaph, hands in his pockets, eyes on the ground with his attention elsewhere. No one visited the monument at night and Iruka knew that from experience. A light sigh escaped his lips, as he suddenly felt a bit cold. Even though the rain was a light drizzle, he'd been standing under it for quite sometime and his shirt was soaked almost thoroughly. He sensed another presence walking down the same path. Iruka kept his gaze down and only when the person in front of him stopped and he walked passed him did the person speak."I heard that you were an all around nice person. Are you ignoring me?"Iruka blinked and turned to find the charming looking man that he heard many female chuunins talk about. "Shiranui-san." He said, blinking in surprise and then flushed from embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I – I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings.""You've been doing that a lot." Genma said, walking up to him and lifting an eyebrow in question. "Are you okay?"Iruka was a bit confused about why a high-level and older Jounin would be concerned over him. He parted his lips in mere surprise at the thought and turned his attention back to the taller man before him. "I'm fine, thank you for asking." He said politely giving Genma a smile.

   
"Right." Genma said, shrugging. "Well, I'm just curious. You seem like a sensible young man, so what exactly are you doing getting soaked like that? You absence would mean more substitution."

Iruka felt something in him clench at those words, but he said nothing. He merely offered the Jounin before him a smile and then a light laugh. "Don't worry, Shiranui-san. The rain is kind of nice. Refreshing." Iruka suddenly felt very uncomfortable around the Jounin and the smile on his face became visibly strained. "Well, it's nice bumping into you. I better get going. It's getting late.""It's a weekend." Genma said. "Shouldn't you be free?"Iruka merely looked somewhere else other then the Jounin before him. "I – I still have some lessons to plan." Iruka gave Genma a little dip of his head and a distracted smile. "Good night, Shiranui-san."A hand came to rest on his slim shoulder. "You are ignoring me, aren't you?""I am not." Iruka answered evenly."Then why are you so eager to leave?" Genma said, and this made Iruka face him."Is there a reason for me to stay?" Iruka asked, rather annoyed and quite hotly. "Enlighten me, Shiranui-san. Please." Sarcasm laced his voice and he clearly was getting very annoyed. Genma liked the smiling and calm chuunin annoyed. He looked rather amusing with his eyes narrowed and face in a semi-pout that Iruka seemed not to be aware of. "Well? I'm waiting!""Now, now, is that any way to speak to your elders?" Genma asked, voice drawling out every word.Iruka caught himself and shook his head. "I'm tired, Shiranui-san. If there's nothing you want, I'd like to go home and rest." Genma gave him a bored look. Iruka just snapped. "Look," He said hotly. "If this is about that coffee incident, I said I was sorry! And I didn't mean for it to fall on you! I'm sorry all right?" A sudden look of concern came to his face. "How is your shoulder? Is it better? Have you gone to the hospital to have it checked?"Genma blinked. First, Iruka was angry and pissed off, now he was concerned and caring? Genma found it utterly amusing. "It's fine. I told you that this afternoon.""Right." Iruka said, blushing visibly. "Good night." He said again and this time with full intent of leaving Genma behind."By the way," Genma said and walked beside him, handing him a green bell pepper. Iruka looked at him weirdly, blinking and lips parted in surprise. "This one is yours." Iruka stuttered for words as he looked at the bell pepper in his hands and he imagined a little smile appearing on the pepper's surface. "It fell from your grocery bag this morning." Iruka brought a hand to cover his smile discreetly, and at the same time he fought down the fits of laughter threatening to explode out of his mouth."Thank you." Iruka managed to say almost-straightly. "For returning my bell pepper." He met Genma's eyes, saw the blush on the older man's cheeks and quickly bowed. "I better go. I'm starting to feel cold."And Iruka ran as fast as he could to his apartment and once within its safety with the doors locked, he leaned against it and just burst out laughing till his sides hurt. All the while, the bell pepper was in his hand and every time he looked at it, he was overcome by fits of hilarity that he swore he'd never had since before his parents died during the war.TBC


	3. Part 3 Amused

This has been beta-read by b4k4girl. I'd like to give this great person a nice big hug and a whole box of cookies! 

Thank you for all your reviews minna! I'm so grateful!

Enjoy!

**** **** **FAINT 3**

The next windy night, Genma and Raido, along with a group chuunins, were heading back to the village after a long and tiring assassination mission. It was a mild one and fairly easy and both Genma and Raido along with the chuunins behind them were not entirely in a clean state. The stars above them twinkled and it was at approximately two in the morning they entered the gates of Konoha and dispersed. Genma would write the report the next morning and give it to the Hokage's assistants.

"I've been meaning to ask." Raido said, just before they parted. "Did you give Iruka the pepper back?"

"That damn pepper!" Genma hissed and caused Raido to burst out laughing. "It's not funny Raido."

"Yeah, yeah, you're telling me!" Raido mocked and laughed some more. "I swear Genma, you're getting worked up because of a small green pepper!" Genma gave him a dark look. "Or maybe it's just Iruka, hmm?" Genma got confused and blinked, and this added more humor to the whole situation, making Raido wheeze from laughter.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Genma asked, glaring at his friend.

"See? I just say Iruka's name and you're all worked up again!" Raido said, wiping the tears from his eyes, a grin on his face.

"Is there something funny about Iruka? Because, really, Raido, I think I can use a laugh myself." Genma said, getting annoyed.

"Nothing, nothing." Raido said, waving his hand. "Get some rest! And take a bath. You stink."

"Speak for yourself." Genma said, and they both parted ways.

Iruka felt horrible when he woke up, with his head pounding and vision a bit blurry. He slept and stayed at home the other day and cleaned his house a bit. But he felt like he had been jumped on by a thousand of Narutos clones. As he passed by the dressers mirror on his way to the bathroom to get ready for classes, he caught sight of his slightly red-tinged cheeks and worried that he might be coming down with something. Once he showered and dressed, he swallowed two aspirins with his breakfast and made his way to the academy.

As the day progressed, Iruka felt worst and worst. He glanced at the wall clock, the children in front of him copying notes down from the board, somewhat a bit more well behaved than normal. Whatever the reason, he was thankful. He gave a shaky sigh, brought a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose, willing the headache to go away. He swallowed another aspirin just after lunch break and the headache still hadn't left him from that morning. A few minutes passed and the kids stopped writing, a sign that they were done.

"All right class. You're free to go." He said, smiling at them.

A hand shot up in the air and he nodded for Konohamaru to speak his mind. "But the bell hasn't rang yet, sensei."

"It's all right. You've been well behaved today, so go on home and play." He said and as soon as he did, the kids packed their scrolls and equipment excitedly, rusheing out the door calling goodbyes to their sensei. Iruka watched them all leave and when the last student was gone, he stood up and randomly began to pick up fallen papers on the ground and toss them into wastebasket. Although there was someone who came at night to clean the classrooms, he still did it himself.

Once he sorted the classroom, he began to arrange his papers and lesson plans when his vision span wildly that he grasped the edge of the table tightly to steady himself and prevent himself from collapsing in a heap on the wooden floor. "Dear god." He said shakily and sat on his chair and dropped his head on his folded arms on the table.

"IRUKA-SENSEI!" A voice called from the doorway.

Iruka lifted his head up when he heard that familiar voice and looked at the door, forgetting about his dizzy spell for a moment and smiling happily at Naruto. "Naruto!"

"Are you okay, sensei? You look a little under the weather." Naruto said and peered at the elder man with genuine concern.

"I'm all right, Naruto. Don't worry." Iruka smiled widely and patted Naruto's head, ruffling his hair. "So how was your day?"

"I got paid today!" Naruto said gleefully showing Iruka a wad of paper bills. "I said I'd treat myself to ramen. But then I remembered Iruka-sensei and how I haven't seen him in a while and said, well, I'll treat Iruka-sensei too! Ne? Ne? Can you come now, Iruka-sensei? I'm hungry!" Iruka felt something in him melt in to a pile of mush at what Naruto just said. He was so touched by the fact that the boy remembered him that he stared at Naruto with such a soft expression that Naruto's happiness was quickly replaced with concern and sadness. "Ne? Sensei? Are you going to cry? Don't cry! Did I do something bad?"

Iruka laughed lightly at Naruto and patted his back. "No Naruto. You didn't do anything bad. But thank you for your offer to treat me. I'll tell you what. You keep your pay, and I'll treat you to ramen, what do you say?"

Naruto gave him a puzzled look. "But I want to treat you to ramen!"

"And I want to treat you to ramen too!" Iruka said, smiling at Naruto.

"Ne, ne? You're always so nice to me. You always pay for me. I want to pay for you too!" Naruto said, pouting.

"Because Iruka-sensei loves Naruto, that's why he likes to give Naruto everything." Iruka said, taking out his keys and wallet from his drawer. He turned to find Naruto staring at him with misting eyes and a blush on his cheeks. "Iruka-sensei thinks of Naruto as his little son."

Iruka gave out a very loud 'oomph' as he suddenly found Naruto hugging him so tight. Naruto gave him a wide smile and then began to drag him out of the classroom and towards the streets until they reached the Ichiraku, continuously babbling about how he cared for him and how he was going to beat Sasuke one day and how he was going to be a Hokage and so on. Iruka was glad that he only had to file reports that day and he could stay as long as he needed to without worrying.

For now, he just wanted to spend some time with Naruto.

The loud and rather annoying voice was known to all the jounins and chuunins there was in Konoha. After all, that voice could only belong to one orange cannonball of a human who used to pull the most notorious pranks. Genma looked up from the team of genins he had to substitute-duty for that day while they completed their task of painting a building and stared as a short blonde boy dragged a rather flustered and smiling familiar chuunin.

"What have we here?" He said with amusement as the two entered the warm confines of the Ichiraku. He was bored and he was hungry. The genins he was escorting were also tired and were hurrying up to finish. Half an hour later, they approached him, paint splattered on their clothes and waited for their orders. "Well, you're done for the day. Don't worry; your Jounin instructor will be present tomorrow. Meet him at the usual place you gather at the same time." They nodded, gave him their thanks and bid him a good day as they went their separate ways.

Genma gave a little stretch before making his way to the Ichiraku to have something to eat. As he entered, he found Naruto patting his stomach, five empty bowls before him, and Iruka setting his empty bowl down. "Thank you, Iruka-sensei." Naruto said, smiling from ear to ear.

"Anytime, Naruto." Iruka said, smiled at him just as happily.

Genma took the time to admire the sight before him. The exchange between the two was very endearing. Iruka was very good with children and the children themselves seemed to love him too. He watched as Iruka brought up a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose while Naruto stared at him with concern.

"Sensei?" The boy queried.

"It's nothing Naruto. Just a migraine I woke up with." Iruka gave Naruto a smile.

"You should go home, Iruka-sensei." Naruto said. "Get some sleep. I knew you weren't feeling well when I came to you today! You really did look unwell!"

Iruka merely smiled. "Not to worry Naruto. I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Naruto said, giving him a doubtful look. Iruka merely nodded and laughed good naturedly as he left the bills on the counter top.

Genma approached the counter as Iruka and Naruto stood up to leave. "Two chicken ramen to go." He said, lifting two fingers up as the man nodded and started preparing his order. "Hello, Iruka-san, Naruto."

Naruto looked at him with confusion and then he remembered. "Ah! You're the referee!"

Genma felt his eye twitch at that comment. "Yes, I _was_ the referee."

"Are you a chuunin?" Naruto asked, looking at him with his eyes scrunched up and head tilted to one side.

"I'm a Jounin." Genma said and gave Naruto a bored look. He turned to look at Iruka, who indeed did seem a bit pale and tired looking.

"Good afternoon, Shiranui-san." He greeted.

Genma gave him a smirk and paid for his order. "So what you two up to?" He asked.

"I'm going to train!" Naruto said.

"But you just ate five bowls!" Iruka said, quickly disapproving of Naruto training after eating so much.

"After I go home and take a nap." Naruto corrected and grinned sheepishly at Iruka.

"Fine, fine. Come on, let's get you home." Iruka said. Genma felt worry creep in him as he looked at Iruka. Iruka shivered a little bit as a mild breeze blew against him. "Good day Shiranui-san." Iruka said, as he patted Naruto's back, who waved at Genma and proceeded to talk to Iruka about his goals with renewed vigor.

As Genma sat on the stool waiting for his order to be cooked, the old man running the place arranged the things on the countertop. "Nice pair those two." Genma looked up at him. "Loyal customers and very friendly."

"Yeah?" Genma said, interest piqued. "You know Iruka?"

"I knew his father." The man said. "Came here often after missions." A sad look came to man's face. "Died in the fight with the fox along with his wife. Left Iruka on his own when he was about eleven years old. Funny those two get along though." He said, wiping the counter top.

"He's an orphan then." Genma stated, thinking of how Iruka must have led a difficult life, just like Naruto. Maybe that was why they got along so well. And Iruka seemed to love the blonde boy to bits.

"But one hell of a hard worker. A family man, if you know what I mean. Though with his attitude, he won't get no family just yet."

"What do you mean?" Genma asked, looking at the man with serious honey-colored eyes and chewing on his needle.

"The guy has been single for as long as I can remember." The old man turned around and stirred the broth he was making before putting them in styrofoam containers and wrapping them up nicely. "He seems to have no luck at all."

"I see." Genma said, taking his order. "Thank you."

"Come back again!" The man said, smiling at him as Genma left the warm threshold. He headed back to the Jounin office located next to academy to have his lunch with Raido. All the while, his mind was occupied by thoughts of a certain chuunin. As he took a turn towards the office, he saw Iruka enter the academy gates and disappear in to the building.

He shook his head and made his way to the lounge where he and Raido would play some poker while eating ramen.

"Hello!" Raido snapped, and Genma dropped the cards he was holding from the surprise.

"What was that for?" Genma snapped, picking up his cards.

"That's the third time you've spaced out in the past hour! What is wrong with you?" Raido asked, taking the cards off Genma to shuffle and deal them again.

"Nothing's wrong with me! You're the one yelling like an idiot." Genma said.

"Well, if you heard me call your name the first dozen times, I wouldn't have yelled, and you're an idiot too!" Raido said, shuffling in a flashy manner. "Besides, you're calling me an idiot? You're the one who got so worked up because of a green bell pepper!" Genma gave him a dirty look and this made Raido laugh real hard. "Oh, ok! I get it! You're thinking about that chuunin aren't you?"

"W-What?" Genma asked, blinking in surprise. He nearly dropped the needle he was chewing on.

"You're thinking about him." Raido said, laughter subsided and voice now serious. "You've been doing that since you got burned by a pitcher full of coffee." Genma said nothing because Raido was telling the truth. He was thinking of Iruka.

"He's an orphan." Genma said.

"So?" Raido asked, setting his cards down to lift the container of ramen to finish its contents.

"He lost his parents to the demon. And he loves Naruto to bits." Genma said, leaning against the comfortable chair. "He's really good with children."

"That's not what's bothering you." Raido said dully and lifted the styrofoam container to his lips to drink the tangy-chicken broth. "I can tell. You have never acted this way in all the years I've known you."

"Whatever." Genma mumbled and lifted his ramen container and started eating the noodles.

Silence reigned between the two until Raido spoke again. "You like him don't you?"

Genma choked on the noodles he was in the middle of swallowing, dropped the container all over his lap and managed to get rid of the choking sensation and curse at the same time. "Damnit Raido! I most definitely do not need another fucking burn!"

"That's not an answer." Raido said in a singsong voice. "I was right then! You do like him!" Genma's face visibly colored as he struggled to wipe off the chicken broth stain on his crotch area and thighs while Raido just laughed. "Besides, the broth ain't too hot. I'm sure little Willy won't mind a little bit of warm sensation."

"You piece of -" Genma gave out a growl instead of continuing his curse and did the next best thing. He kicked Raido on the shins.

"Ow! Ow! Yup, you're in denial already!" Raido said in between his laughs. "Oh I swear Genma! You really have it hard for him don't you?"

"We'll continue this later!" Genma hissed dangerously and stalked off towards the men's restroom.

Genma pushed the swinging door with so much force that it nearly fell off its hinges. He grabbed several pieces of tissue paper and stood over the sink, turning the cold tap on full blast and wiping his pants with wet tissue papers, in hopes to get some of the stain and smell off.

"That damn bastard!" Genma cursed as he scrubbed at his pants furiously. "What the hell was he thinking? Making stupid comments like that!" He hissed and let out another colorful string of curses and didn't stop until he heard the familiar creaking noise the door made when it opened and closed. He stopped cursing and looked up to find a very flustered Iruka-sensei who looked utterly scandalized at the curses he was saying. Somehow, the chuunin didn't expect someone like Genma to say things like, _'that mother fucking turd', 'ass ramming nutcase', 'dickless call boy' and 'fucking son of a bitch'_.

Genma just wished he could crawl under the sink and hide. He watched with his cheeks coloring with each passing second as Iruka turned away stiffly, all intents of emptying his tank gone and left the bathroom without another word.

"Shit!" Genma cursed and banged his head on the white tile walls of the bathroom, tap still running and pants looking as if he peed on himself.

TBC


	4. Part 4 Humiliated

Beta-read by b4k4girl. Thank her minna! And check out her fics too! Such cuteness with KakaIru. 

Enjoy!

**** **** **FAINT 4**

Iruka sat on his chair, looking at the empty classroom blankly. A few minutes ago, he was so eager to get to the bathroom and empty his filled up tank. But now? Iruka brought hands to his ears. He had never heard anyone curse so foully before and with so much hatred and anger. The curses he heard were burning his ears and the fact that he was blushing did not help at all. Whoever Shiranui Genma was cursing, Iruka prayed the person was all right.

Iruka remained seated on his chair not moving for a good half an hour. "How could he - he - s-say all those things?" Iruka said and briefly chuckled and made a mental note of the rather interesting phrases he heard the honey-haired man say.

He then resumed his work.

When Genma entered the office, he found it empty save for Raido who was looking out the window. Genma felt depressed and ashamed of himself. He ignored Raido's teasing looks. He sat dejectedly on his seat, pants dry after using some heat-induced jutsu, but he still smelled of ramen.

"What's with the long face?" Raido asked, lifting both eyebrows and s mug smile on his face.

"I just had half a bowl of ramen fall over my thighs and crotch area! In case you didn't know, that ramen broth was quite hot! And if I am never able to produce children, I'll blame it on you." Genma said hotly, glaring at his best friend.

"Yeah well that's not technically possible if you get on the naughty side with Iruka." Raido mumbled.

"What?" Genma asked, growling.

"Nothing." Raido said, waving a hand. Genma took a seat on a drier chair and leaned back, bringing a hand to the bridge of his nose and pinching it. Raido couldn't help but notice the troubled and resigned look on Genma's face. Several moments went by and Raido finally had enough. "Okay, Genma. I'm sorry. But really, you're freaking me out. Is something bothering you? Is it Iruka?"

"I don't think I'll be able to face him ever again." Genma said, looking like he just suffered a heartbreak. Is he?

"Why?" Raido asked, curious.

Genma sighed and told him what took place in the men's restroom and it took all of Raido's will power to stifle his laughter. But somehow, the look of sadness and defeat in Genma's honey-eyes made him forget about laughing and feel genuine concern for his friend. "And that's what happened."

"Well, for starters, you're an idiot for cursing like that and dropping your guard." Raido berated him and Genma seemed to sink lower in to the chair he was sitting in. "I think you should apologize."

"Just which part of 'I don't think I'll be able to face him' did you not get?" Genma asked, face tinged red in shame.

"Who said you have to face him?" Raido said, shrugging. "Look, we have a Jounin gathering in a few minutes with Hokage-sama. Write him a letter of apology and well - look! No use hiding it, okay? I knew you liked him ever since you took that bell pepper from him and treated it as if it were made of glass." Genma flushed even more. "So ask him out on a date or something. Tell him how you feel or give a hint. Just do something or else your distraction might bring us danger in missions. And since we're mission-free nowadays, I suggest you get this over and done with. Besides, who knows? He might be _the one_." Genma threw his friend and comrade a dirty look. "You like him. So stop looking at me that way." Genma stared at him blankly for a while. "So are you going to write it?"

"Yeah, all right."

"Great!" Raido said and led his friend towards the Hokage's office where chairs had been set up for their use.

Genma stared at the blank paper on his lap and did not give any attention to what Tsunade was saying. He was so busy thinking of Iruka. In the past four days, he found himself thinking more and more of the chuunin. As he learned more about him, the desire to just sit beside him and talk to him, possibly take his hand give it a reassuring squeeze grew bigger and bigger. He wanted to get to know more about the chuunin teacher - his likes and dislikes, favorite food, favorite color, uke or seme - Genma dropped the needle he was chewing on as that particular thought crossed his mind. He calmly picked the needle up, wiped it and chewed on it again.

Then he started writing.

Moving his hand, he positioned it on top of the paper on the clipboard he was holding and began to write his feelings. He reminded himself not swear of put any sort of bad word that may traumatize the innocent looking chuunin. As he wrote, he poured out his heart and confusion and how the past four days had been occupied by thoughts of him and only him. When he was done, he scanned the neatly printed hiragana and kanji and the occasional katakana and was very satisfied when he saw not one curse word in the entire sheet. Just as he was about to sign it, he felt the clipboard being snatched out of his grasp and found a very beautiful and rather pissed off Hokage looking down at him.

"Just what are you so busy writing that you did not hear me call your name twice, Genma?" She asked and Genma could have sworn he _saw_ Raido slap his forehead and _heard_ the slap. Genma really, really wished he hid in the sink in the men's rest room. Several other invited jounins were now looking at him with interest - mainly Kakashi, Gai and Asuma. "What have we here?" Tsunade said looking at the paper on the clipboard. Genma was desperate and quickly made a grab for the clipboard only to have the Hokage's hand shoot up from nowhere, hitting him on the shoulder and causing him to fall on the ground.

"What is this?" Tsunade said, voice laced with a teasing note and excitement. "Oh my god! I never would have thought I'd see the day that something like this would - I knew something was up when you were all quiet and absorbed in to your clipboard. But I didn't think it was this!"

Raido groaned and dragged his hand down his face. Genma swallowed loudly and calmly and shakily got back to his chair, sat down and kept a straight face. He turned to look at Raido and gave him the most heated and fierce glare he could muster and vowed to kill him once the ex-meeting was over. He prayed for a bolt of lighting to strike the Hokage and Raido, but since luck was not his side that _lovely_ day, no lightning came and he watched with horror as the scene before him began to unfold. Tsunade began to read aloud the letter he wrote - well, just a part of it.

_"I've been thinking about you ever since I saw you face to face properly for the first time in that corridor. I don't know why my mind is plagued with thoughts of you, every second of every day since you accidentally tripped and got that pitcher of coffee dumped all over me." _Tsunade read, a smirk on her beautiful face. Genma had to conjure up every ounce of will power and strength to not sink in to his chair and maintain a straight face, while all the other jounins in the room save for Raido, began to buzz with excitement. Some of the female jounins were already giggling and younger ones were squealing with delight at the rather 'sweet' letter. _"My world has turned upside down even in the most painful way. But what I'm really trying to say is that I like you. And I would like to go out with you sometime and start anew. I really do like you and it may be odd that I've only known you for four days, but damnit, I think I love you too." _

Whatever control Genma had in the beginning disappeared in a second as the squeals and chatter definitely reached 'deafening level'. Finally, Genma sank into his chair, hid his face behind his hands and blushed.

Genma was the first one out of the door once the meeting was over. "Genma! Genma wait!" Raido called out and quickly followed him. Genma headed for his apartment, locked every door and window there was and just entered the bathroom, locking that door too. He stripped off his clothes, turned the cold shower on and sat on the round tub while the water fell on his lean figure.

The banging on the door of the bathroom was no surprise to him. He just locked his apartment anyway, and it was no good for a village filled with ninjas. "What?" He said, voice deep and hurt. He was ashamed and felt like a coward.

"Come on out here! Let's talk this one out." Raido's voice echoed from beyond the door.

"Go stab yourself to death Raido. Leave me alone." Genma said, the humiliation he felt hurting him so much that he never wanted to leave his apartment again.

"The Hokage said that it was such a cute letter right after you run off!" Raido said.

"Fuck what the Hokage said!" Genma snapped. "Go away, Raido, please."

No reply came from the behind the door. Genma brought cold wet hands to his face and sighed loudly, feeling like an old man all of a sudden. He turned the hot tap on and took a quick shower before drying himself and heading for his bedroom to change into cleaner clothes. He briefly wondered how he was going to face the next day without resembling an apple the whole time.

Iruka walked in to his class the next day, with the same migraine he had the other day, feeling tired and really sleepy. He had spent the entire night making lesson plans for that day and was rather surprised when the students started giving him queer looks. He pointedly ignored it and carried on with the lesson like the children were not looking at him weirdly. But when they began to whisper with his back turned to them, he snapped. He had one hell of a headache and he had run out coffee and tea that morning. He was not in a very good mood.

"All right, that's it! What is going on?" He demanded, glaring at the children. The children fell quiet immediately. "Well? I'm waiting!" One hand bravely shot up. "Yes." He said, signaling for the boy to speak.

"Does Iruka-sensei have a boyfriend?" He asked and Iruka flushed redder than the red score book he had on his table.

"W-What?" Iruka stuttered. "Where did you get such an idea from?"

"My mommy says that Iruka-sensei will have a boyfriend soon!" One of the girls said.

"And my mommy too!" Another boy said.

"And mine!"

"Me too!"

"My mommy and daddy were talking about it last night during dinner!"

"My mommy mentioned it today during breakfast!"

"Mine too!"

Iruka felt his legs suddenly turn to jelly. He clapped his hand twice, caught the attention of all the kids and swallowed. "Lessons are over. Pack your bags and go home. No homework and all quizzes for this week are cancelled."

The children gave whoops of joy as they rushed out of the classroom two hours before dismissal time. Once everyone was gone, Iruka gathered his things in a daze and shakily made his way to the office where reports were waiting for him to give his attention to. However, upon entering the office, several jounins turned to look at him, and immediately giggles from the younger ones reached his ears while some of the male ones smirked and smiled at him. Iruka took a few folders with him from the box that was half filled and left the room in a hurry to get away from all the giggles and strange happy stares. He headed for the men's restroom and splashed water on his face. His headache was getting worst and worst and he woke up with a cold that morning. He wasn't exactly feeling very nice and the strange things happening throughout the day weren't helping him lighten his mood either.

He shakily dried his face with his handkerchief and headed for his classroom, where he began to file the reports. As an hour passed, Iruka felt nausea hit him with hard slap. His world swirled for several moments. Loosening his ponytail, he crossed his arms in front of him on the table and dropped his head gently on them, closing his eyes and waiting for the spinning images around him to stop.

He could feel his skin heat up and his lips tremble. He really, really wasn't feeling very good at all.

TBC


	5. Part 5 Confessing

I remembered someone asking me if Shiranui was Genma's name. Actually, Shiranui is his surname, so I hope I have that part cleared up. Thank you for all your reviews! You've made me a happy person.

This has been beta-read by b4k4girl! Wai! Thank you!

Here's part 5. I finally typed it out when I got home day before yesterday. After daydreaming in the airport and airplane on what scenes can unfold and taking out my laptop while sitting in a very boring and dull waiting room and writing the chapter outline – woot! I'm glad this came out okay. My beta-reader says so at least.

Enjoy!

**FAINT 5**

****

****

****

It was only early afternoon and Genma was already seeing red. He sat seething in his seat in the office, glaring at everything and everyone. Not a second passed by since the morning in which he did _not_ receive any giggles, comments or looks of 'oho! I know who you got the hots for' and looks of curiosity and sometimes annoyance. Genma swore that if he didn't care for his village so much, he'd turn in to someone that could rival Orochimaru himself.

"Be a dear Genma." A female ninja whom he didn't even know addressed him. "I have to go and catch up for my son's birthday. Would you give this Iruka-sensei for me?" Genma threw her a filthy dark look but she was unperturbed by it. "Thank you Genma. It's real important. The Hokage is expecting that report from him. Good day!"

Genma was left alone in the office, staring at white folder in his hand. Raido and Shizune were out on a C-rank mission with a few genins. Whatever he said about missions being tiresome, he took every single word back. Right about now, he'd do anything to get a nice long mission just to get away from all the smiles and giggles and occasional annoyed looks. He let out a sigh and stood up, heading for the academy and the classroom that he knew Iruka used and taught in. He knocked twice before sliding the doors open and found Iruka with his head faced away from the door, tucked on top his arms, the elastic rubber band he used to tie his hair up lying on the floor.

Genma blinked and walked in, wondering if the chuunin was all right or if he was hurt. Once he got closer and saw the flush on Iruka's cheeks and slightly parted lips, along with the long locks of dark brown hair framing the innocent look he had, he felt his cheeks color and the blood roar in his ears. If Genma was denying the fact he liked Iruka by making up excuses even after the incident the other day, he did not know how long he could keep it up after seeing Iruka like _this_. His skin was a caramel color, with long lashes caressing his cheeks and full lips that were always curved in a smile and was currently parted and rosier in color. His hair was dark and thick, the color of the chocolate syrup Genma remembered his aunt used to pour on top of the famous banana dessert she used to make for him when he was young. He was lithe with narrow shoulders and a slim waist, just the right amount of muscles to made him look manly and fit but just enough to give him a slight 'feminine' tinge to his physique. Genma could feel his muscles tighten and his breath suddenly hitch as he stared at Iruka asleep, completely oblivious to his surroundings. He looked so endearing and so - Genma shook his head. He couldn't possibly think such thoughts _now_.

He debated whether to wake the slumbering Iruka or to just leave the folder on his desk and leave quietly. Without really deciding, his hand gently reached out for Iruka, about to brush the lock of hair behind his ear but it settled on his shoulder to shake him awake instead. "Iruka-sensei?"

Iruka blinked his way back to reality and sat up, staring rather blearily at Genma. The chocolate brown eyes snapped open widely and a flush came to his cheeks adding more redness to his already red skin. "Sh-Sh-Shiranui-san!" He stuttered.

"Are you all right?" Genma asked, taking in the sweet flustered look that Iruka had on his face.

"I - I - C- Can I help you w-with something?" He said instead of coming up with an excuse. Genma watched as Iruka ran his fingers through his loose hair and searched around for his elastic band. He found it behind his chair and quickly picked it up, grabbing all his hair and pulling it up into its normally bushy ponytail.

Genma let out a chuckle as he watched Iruka try to look composed, only to have a very, very messed up ponytail with loose hair strands falling on the sides and back, forehead protector tilted to one side and the supposed bushy ponytail all but neat and stiff. "Honestly, big deal. So you fell asleep. Where's the harm in that?" Genma said, casually pushing the forehead protector up Iruka's temple to straighten it when his fingers grazed against the flushed skin of Iruka's face. Genma frowned. "Why haven't you gone home yet? It's past five already."

"I - I still have to finish these." Iruka said and jerked the forehead protector off along with his elastic hair band. He let out a long tired sigh and turned his eyes up at Genma. "Is there anything you need?" 

"Just dropping off this folder." Genma said, leaving the folder on Iruka's desk. Iruka gave the folder a desperate and tired look before taking it and placing it on the pile beside him.

"Thank you." Iruka said and this time slowly redid his ponytail, getting it just right.

"Right. See you around." Genma said and walked out of the classroom, sliding the doors closed. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he found Kakashi, Asuma and Gai looking at him by the doorway. "What are you three doing here?" He hissed, foul mood suddenly returning.

"Aren't you going to tell him?" Kakashi asked, peering in to the classroom to find Iruka scribbling down on the folders.

"Tell him what?" Genma hissed and dragged the three away from the chuunin's classroom and in to the quadrangle before things got uglier.

"That you like him of course!" Gai said, flashing him a toothy smile

"That is NONE of your business. I'll tell him when I want to!" Genma hissed and glared at the three. "What's it to you three anyway?"

"Iruka is the resident crush of many people around here." Asuma said warningly. "Why do you think you've been getting annoyed looks from some?"

"He is?" Genma asked, suddenly eager to march back in to the classroom and confess his undying affections for the younger ninja.

"Yes! So you better make your moves!" Kakashi said, smiling beneath his mask.

Genma suddenly looked very flustered. "Fine. I - I'll go tell him I like him."

Genma made his way for the academy entrance when the three blocked his path. He gave them a puzzled look and then got annoyed. Why can't Asuma just go and play Romeo with his Kurenai? Why can't Gai just go and make a whole show about youth and its spring and whatnot? Why can't Kakashi just go and read his Icha Icha Paradise? Genma made up his mind and he really, really need to get this over and done with. Better know that he tried rather than have his feelings suppressed. Although, it still surprised him he fell that hard in just a grand total of five days. The fluttering in his stomach whenever he thought of Iruka got worst and worst. Firstly, it was just slight wondering and annoyed thoughts about how the chuunin can be so careless. That evolved in to more, more wondering and just genuine curiosity. Then that blasted Raido had to point out things and now he was just head over heels for the chuunin. And the three buffoons were standing in his way. He gave them his most baleful glare.

"What did you say?" Kakashi asked.

"I said I will go and tell him that I like him." Genma said, getting annoyed by the three even more. The three exchanged looks then frowned at him.

"You're just going to march up to him and tell him?" Kakashi asked, eyes a bit wide.

Genma sighed. "Yes."

"No plan? Or well - a plan?" Asuma asked, both eyebrows raised, frown evident on his face.

"What plan? I don't need a plan to just speak what I feel for him!" Genma answered.

"So you mean to say that you're just going to walk in to the classroom and tell him you like him?" Gai asked, sounding scandalized.

"Yes as I've said a few seconds ago. Now will you three move it so I can get this over and done with?" Genma hissed.

"You can't!" Kakashi said suddenly and the other two nodded.

"Come again?" Genma asked, frowning now.

"You. Can't." Asuma repeated.

Genma's eyes widened and the needle hung limply in between his lips. He could feel his heart suddenly stop and his mind go blank as he stared at the trio in front of him. "You - You - three - you - like -"

"NO!" They chorused.

"Then what?" Genma snapped back.

"Look here, Genma, this is a great thing! You finally found someone you really like after such a long time! I mean, you! One of the best shinobis of the leaf, talented, handsome and smug! This is momentous! The reason we really stopped you is because you're a bit...lame. Have a bit more style in your confession." Kakashi said, all while with an arm draped around Genma's shoulder.

"Style." Genma repeated. He then narrowed his eyes dangerously, hands reaching out for his kunai holster. "Is there something wrong with the one I have now?"

Kakashi swallowed and wisely took several steps away from Genma.

"No, no. There's nothing wrong with it, of course." Gai said, waving his hands. "What we meant was that you should be a bit - ummm - creative. Like, maybe give him some flowers or candy perhaps? Uh - sing him a song or give him a nice poem. That stuff, get it?"

Genma was a bit off when it came to courtship so he blinked at the three. "You think so?"

"Hell yeah!" Kakashi said. "Iruka is a real nice sweetheart. Give home something to nibble on and some stuff to sniff and you two will be in bed in no time!"

"I don't think that's how it goes." Genma said with doubt. He wished he were more experienced with the arts of courtship and love. After his parents died during a mission several years ago, he never really got down to having a lover. He had Raido as his best friend and it was sufficient enough - until he got coffee all over him and burning hot at that!

 "Oh Genma!" Asuma said, waving a hand. "It will work. Iruka is that sweetest guy and is very romantic. Say nice things to him and he'll fall at your feet. Believe us, it will work!"

Genma gave a sigh. Well, anything is better than rejection. Judging by the phases Raido went through when he got rejected or dumped, Genma evaluated that it must have been really painful. He didn't want Iruka to hate him and he hoped - and he hoped a lot - that Iruka may like him too.

"Fine." Genma said, agreeing. "Is there a flower shop nearby?"

TBC


	6. Part 6 Tiring

This has been beta-read by b4k4girl! Wai! I love this girl! She's sooooooooooo cool!!! Wah! tackle glomps

Enjoy minna!

**FAINT 6**

Genma stared at the rather plain and dull bouquet of roses that were wrapped up in a brown paper bag with a silly excuse of a white ribbon tied around the base to apparently give it a grand look. Genma felt a frown tug his lips down as he stared at Kakashi who was holding it out to him. Kakashi had a proud smile under the fabric of his mask and was happily holding the flowers as if it were the most amazing thing on the planet. Genma thought otherwise.

"When I said bouquet of flowers, I meant an actual bouquet from a flower shop, not wild roses that you clipped off bushes with your kunai and wrapped in a supermarket paper bag and cake ribbon!" Genma hissed, trying to control his temper.

"I'm broke." Kakashi said and looked at the 'bouquet' in his hands. "What's wrong with these? Asuma, they look nice right?"

Asuma wisely did not open his mouth, but looked at the grass instead.

"Oh, just take them!" Gai said, and shoved the flowers at Genma who had no choice but to indeed take them.

Genma stared at the flowers and held them away from him as if they carried Anthrax. "Okay, I have them now. Now what?"

"Go give them to him!" Asuma said, pointing at the academy entrance. "Go. Go. He'll get the idea."

Genma gathered all the strength he had and stiffly made his way to Iruka's classroom. He peered in slightly and found him bent over the folder on his desk, scribbling furiously. Genma suddenly felt like a coward and did not have the heart to face rejection or anything of its sort. He took a step back but a slight hiss from the end of the corridor where three heads poked just around the corner told him otherwise. Asuma waved a hand, a frantic 'get going' expression on his face while Gai and Kakashi nodded. Genma shut his eyes for a few seconds, inhaled deeply and knocked.

"Come in." Iruka replied from within, and Genma hid the flowers behind his back. With a final sigh, he pushed the door open and entered, bouquet behind his back as he made his way to Iruka's table. Iruka looked up at him and blinked in confusion before stifling a yawn with the back of his hand. "Shiranui-san. What can I do for you?"

Genma was about to open his mouth to speak when he felt something crawl on the back of his hand. "Umm -"

Iruka tried to look at what Genma was hiding behind him but Genma shifted so as to hide the flowers. Whatever that thing was at the back of his hand, it was starting to make him a little jumpy. He was not comfortable with something crawling on top of his hand, something that he had no idea what on earth it was. Something that could - STING!

"FUCK!" Genma cursed loudly and bit his lip as his hand began to sting over and over again.

Iruka looked hurt. Genma let out a hissing curse and then poofed away until he was in the school quadrangle. He dropped the bouquet on the ground and stared at his hand to find a wasp - no two wasps - stuck on his hand with their needle-like organ stuck painfully in to the back of his hand. The problem with the sting was that it was acidic, which  was why it was hurting like a bitch. Genma quickly squished the two wasps with his other open palm before darting to the nearby clinic to have his hand treated before any infections took hold. The nurse had lectured him about wasps being very dangerous little things and that it was a good thing that he came right away.

Genma sighed as the nurse bandaged his now swollen hand and gave him instructions for some cream she had told him to use. He bought the cream from the clinic's pharmacy. Just as he exited the clinic, he found three very curious jounins looking at him expectantly.

"Well? Why didn't you give it to him?" Asuma asked, more worried about the fact that Iruka did not get his flowers rather than Genma's own predicament.

"Damnit! Just where on earth did you find those flowers?" Genma demanded as he glared at Kakashi. "Did you even check if the damn poor excuse of a bouquet had insects in them say like, oh I don't know, wasps?!" The three took a step back unconsciously. "Look at this! They sting and hurt like a bitch, damnit!"

"Well, then. Forget the flowers." Gai said, and then patted Genma's shoulder. "You have my sympathy."

"I don't need your bloody sympathy. I need my privacy!" Genma said and brought a hand to his forehead. "This is the worst day of life! No, worst is an understatement!"

"Sing him a song then!" Asuma said.

-!-

"Don't move." Kakashi said, as he placed some healing balm on the fat and ugly bruise on Asuma's cheek.

"It really hurts." Asuma said, cigarette lying in between his thumb and index finger.

"He packs quite a punch." said Gai, who had a somewhat fearful look on his face. He was glad that he was not in Asuma's place. None of the three even saw the Jounin move until Asuma was a good five feet away on the ground and cradling a very, very painful jaw.

"Are you sure it isn't broken?" Asuma asked, wincing as Kakashi spread the cream on his face.

"No. Otherwise you wouldn't be able to talk at all." Kakashi said. "You think he went home?"

"Yeah." Gai said, staring at the now evening sky. "Iruka's still in his classroom. Maybe we should go talk to him."

"I'll go talk to him." Kakashi said, wiping his finger with a tissue paper and patting Asuma's back. "Maybe this will get you extra nice treatment from Kurenai eh?" At that comment, a mischievous glint appeared in Asuma's eyes. "Right, you guys go on home. I'll go talk to Iruka." Gai bid them a flashy farewell and poofed away while Asuma sighed and began to walk out of the gates. Kakashi gingerly made his way to Iruka's classroom and found the chuunin stirring a cup of coffee, staring at the papers in front of him with a rather sad look. "Iruka-sensei?"

Iruka turned to look at him and a sour and dark look came to his face. "If you are here to yell profanities in front of me, then kindly leave the classroom. I have no time for your Jounin antics. I have a lot of work to do!"

Kakashi blinked. "Why would I yell profanities at you?"

"Oh I don't know. It seems like a trend with you Jounins." Iruka said sarcastically. He then sighed and rubbed his temple with his fingers. "Look, Kakashi-san, I'm really tired and I still have a lot of work to do. What is it you need?"

Kakashi took a long look at Iruka, and noticed his slumped tired shoulders, dark circles under his eyes, pale face and slightly flushed cheeks. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine."

"Well, I was just here to check up on you." Kakashi said. "Iruka-sensei, please leave all these for now. You've been working over time. I don't think Gen - Naruto would be very happy if his sensei fell ill from overwork."

Iruka gave him a sad smile. "I'm fine Kakashi-san." He said, and picked up his pen. "It's not like there's anyone at home anyway." He mumbled and Kakashi wouldn't have heard him if he didn't have trained ears. "I'll be fine. I just have one more folder to do then I'll go home."

"Good." Kakashi said. "Well, I'll be off now. See you tomorrow, Iruka-sensei."

Kakashi left the classroom and thought of what Iruka said. Maybe he really did need someone in his life. Someone to take care of him. Kakashi sighed and hoped that Genma would move quickly. The poor guy was so lonely.

-!-

Iruka closed the last folder two hours later and stood up shakily and began to clear his table. He headed for the data-room and placed the folders in their proper places before making sure that he turned all the lights off. He then made his way home, dragging his feet and staring at the ground most of the time. Once he reached home, he took a quick shower, changed into his sleeping clothes and fell on his bed. He was out like a light the moment his head hit the pillows.

The next morning, Iruka couldn't get up from the bed. He felt as if all his bones had been crushed and his world spun wildly around him. He gave out a tired groan and shifted in the bed, forcing himself to stand up and get to work. He took two aspirins and ate an energy bar, showered and changed in to his regular uniform. He then rushed off to the academy at a rather slow pace due to his feverish state. He knew he should stay at home and rest, but he just didn't want -

_You being sick would mean more substitutions._

Iruka shut his eyes and reopened them with determination. He'd do his job, no fever or cold or virus is going to keep him bedridden. Once he reached the classroom, he was shot several concerned looks by his students. He felt his throat go dry at a rapid pace and then for a moment, he feared that no sound would come out of his mouth. He was very surprised when his voice actually came out clearly, though his throat hurt. The day went on smoothly until the period after lunch came. He was in the middle of teaching when his vision blurred very badly. He took several steps back, trying to maintain control of his body's weakness and leaned against the table as he continue to explain to the children about chakra control.

"So, in order to have perfect control of chakra, one should -" Iruka stopped speaking as he swayed on his feet.

"Iruka-sensei!" One of the children said in an alarmed voice.

"Are you okay? Iruka-sensei!"

"Sensei!"

"Iruka-sensei!"

"Iruka-sensei!"

"Sensei!"

Iruka looked up to find the classroom in multiplied four times in swirling patterns. Black dots began to appear at the sides of his vision field and then he could see nothing else and feel nothing else as his body fell forward.

-!-

Several of the female soon-to-be-ninjas gave out an alarmed scream. One of the boys jumped from his seat and dashed out of the classroom. He found the staff room empty and quickly headed for the office in the next building. He found two jounins in the room.

"Help! Quick!" He said, panting and trying to catch his panicked breaths.

"What's wrong kid?" Raido asked, giving the child his full attention.

"It's sensei! Sensei!" The boy said, placing a hand on his chest to calm his breathing so as to speak properly.

"Which sensei?" Genma asked, narrowing his eyes at the kid. "You look familiar." He said, studying the boy closely. Then he remembered. This was one of the boys he made to run around the field when he took field-practice substitute, the one who laughed at him. "You!"

"It's sensei!" He said, and swallowed. "Iruka-sensei is sick! He fell on the ground! He's not moving!" The boy looked like he was about to cry.

"Oh no." Raido whispered and quickly made a dash for the door, but someone else beat him to it. Raido saw Genma move at his fastest, reaching the classroom and freezing by the doorway at Iruka's fallen figure on the ground. The kids were all huddled around him, trying to wake him up. Raido took control of the children. "All right, back to your places. Everything will be all right. Iruka-sensei is going to be fine!"

Genma knelt next to Iruka and checked his pulse. He found it a bit slow and gave out a low hissing curse. He lifted Iruka in his arms and disappeared in a poof of chakra smoke. Raido stayed with the children and took care of the class while Genma took care of Iruka.

-!-

As Genma leapt through the mass of roofs in Konoha, frantic thoughts crossed his mind. What happened to Iruka? He looked feverish and was now breathing erratically. He entered the hospital and found Shizune who was assisting some nurses.

"Shizune!" He called out and she looked at him, eyes widening at the sight in his arms.

"What happened?" Shizune asked, quickly leading him to a vacant room and ordering him to set Iruka down on the bed. She immediately began to take his blood pressure and temperature.

"He collapsed." Said as he watched Shizune do routine check ups. "Is he going to be okay?"

Shizune did not reply immediately and Genma was very tempted to break something at the moment and this was something that confused him. "He's overworked. His body needs a lot of rest. He has a fever and a low blood pressure." Shizune said, pulling out a syringe and taking out some clear colored solution from the cabinet. "This should help bring the fever down, but he will still have to take some medicines orally." She injected the long needle into Iruka's arm and Genma watched as Iruka's sweat drenched face winced at the pain. Genma felt like knocking the needle out of Shizune's hands. She was hurting him! She gave him another two shots before placing a small band aid on the place where she injected him. "Chakra healing won't do any good here. He needs to rest as in rest in bed. Although chakra healing would be fast, the fatigue would only return twice the force in a few days. So it's better if he heals the natural way." She disposed of the needles and checked Iruka's throat and eyes. "Hold on a minute." Two minutes later, she appeared with plastic containers in her hands. "Here. Have a family member keep a watch on him and have these medicines given to him three times a day. These two containers are to be taken twice a day. Tell them to not give him any greasy food or he might have digestion problems. Soups and lots of liquid is what's best. And a lot of bed rest. What's his name?"

"Umino Iruka." Genma answered and Shizune gave him the 'knowing' look he had learned to recognize. Genma glared at her, but she gave him a sincere smile.

"I'll file a report about his illness and have someone else take his post. Best if he rests at home. It may sound a bit cheesy, but home is the best place for someone to heal and not the hospital." She said. "Well, get going!"

Genma took the medicines and carried Iruka ever-so-gently in his arms. "Thank you." He said to Shizune who just waved her hand and smiled at him. In a second he was gone.

Genma raced across rooftops and then suddenly came to a halt. Iruka lived alone and had no parents. And he had no clue where Iruka lived. "Shit." He grumbled and stared down at the rapidly breathing chuunin in his arms. "Oh, who the hell cares?" He hissed and took a left to head for the outskirts of town, right by the river. Genma entered his own apartment and set Iruka down on his bed. "Now what?" He mumbled and rubbed the back off his head. "Oh boy." He sighed and took off his flak jacket, bandana and turtleneck so that he was left with his pants and sleeveless cotton shirt. He then proceeded to peel away Iruka's clothing until he was in his underwear and grabbed a pair of pyjama bottoms and slipped it on the now delirious chuunin. Iruka mumbled incoherent things in his sleep.

Genma was torn between being annoyed and being worried. Annoyed because he was in a situation in which he'd rather not be. Worried because he did care for the overly nice chuunin and that he didn't mind nursing him back to health. He filled a bowl with cool water and took out a small towel from his drawer. He placed the cool towel on top of Iruka's forehead, and gently wiped the sweat coating his neck, chest and shoulders. Sweating was good because that meant the medicine Shizune injected him with earlier on was fighting the virus in his body. His face remained flushed and he tossed his head back and forth several times in the middle of the night. There were times when Genma would find the chuunin just wincing and groaning as if he were in extreme pain whenever the presence of the cool cloth on his forehead disappeared. There were times when his hands would tighten around the sheets under him and he'd grit his teeth as if he was being tortured slowly.

Genma could feel his patience running out as the third night approached. He hadn't left his apartment and so far, he was lucky that no one had come to drag him out of it. He was very reluctant about leaving Iruka and he was lucky that by the third night, Iruka slept peacefully for the first time. He had resorted to dissolving his medicines in to a drink and feeding it to Iruka by manhandling him. Genma lifted him off the bed and changed the covers and sheets, and then he changed Iruka's clothes down to his underwear and laid him on the crispy sheets. He took a shower and changed in to comfortable clothes, ate a sandwich and sat on the reclining chair that he had dragged from the living room into his bedroom and placed next to the bed. He watched Iruka lying peacefully on the bed, hair splayed across the pillow and the flush on his cheeks was long gone. Genma felt a smile tug on his lips as the chuunin slept on like a baby.

"Man, the things I do for you." Genma grumbled and yawned.

It took Genma a few minutes to fall asleep even though it was already seven in the morning.

TBC

This is something I should have said in the previous chapter, but it just slipped my mind. When I was typing out the chapters in advanced, I told myself to say that the previous chapter and this one was kinda' like a parody of a Slam Dunk fic that I so, so love called "The importance of being straightforward" by Nagyra. The letter scene, the flowers scene and the idea of Gai, Asuma and Kakashi helping him was – well, I couldn't get it out of my mind. I was laughing my guts out when coming up with this story. I couldn't resist.

So, basically, part of the success of this fic goes to Nagyra. She's such a cool writer. Though, it's not a close parody since I changed it a bit, but still a parody.

Anyway, till next time. Ja!


	7. Part 7 Caring

Ah! Finally an update! I just arrived in the Philippines and much to my happiness have discovered that my aunt owns a DSL line and her CPU broke down – meaning I get to solo the connection! WOOT!

A big thank you to b4k4girl who beta-read this for me! Give her a nice hug minna-san and make sure to check out her works as well.

Anyway, a huge thank you and cookies to everyone who reviewed this fic! I hope this chapter is appealing.

Enjoy!

**FAINT 7**

Genma woke up at three in the afternoon and found Iruka still asleep peacefully under the sheets. He reached out to trace his soft features before standing up to take a shower and change into clean clothes. He prepared some soup just in case Iruka woke up and ate three sandwiches. He placed Iruka's clothes in his washing machine and set the timer to wash it, completely forgetting about it. Once the clothes were washed and cleaned, he hung them on his balcony hanger to dry under the afternoon sun. He stared at the clouds in the sky, running a hand through his hair and sighing.

"The things I do for you." He mumbled and entered his apartment, shutting the balcony door. He padded towards his bedroom and sat on his chair, pulling out a shinobi-based book and beginning to read quietly, until the sun vanished from the horizon. He then heard Iruka shift in the bed a bit and peered from behind his book to find the chuunin open his eyes slowly. He watched as the dark orbs looked blankly at the ceiling before they widened.

"Welcome back, sleeping beauty." He teased and nearly dropped the book he was reading when Iruka shot up from bed at an alarming speed and stared at him.

Iruka realized his half-nakedness and quickly grabbed the sheets and pulled them up to his chest, face flushing. "W-Where am I?"

"My place." Genma answered, setting his book down. "Relax. You've been in a feverish state for four days. Shizune says that you really should get some rest."

"But -"

"That means no teaching kids, filing reports or correcting homework for the next week." Genma said, voice filled with authority.

"She said that?" Iruka asked.

"No, I said that." Genma said. A loud rumbling sound made Iruka flush and Genma smirk. "I won't blame your stomach. You must be starving. Stay here a moment."

Genma left Iruka in the room to heat the soup he kept prepared. As he waited across the cooking stove, leaning against the marble counter with his arms crossed across his chest, thoughts of the chuunin a good few meters away from him came to his thoughts. Genma felt a frown tug at his lips. He had been worried the past few days. Worried because Iruka was not getting any better and that his feverish state made him look so vulnerable that Genma wondered if enemies in missions ever took the smiling chuunin seriously. A few bubbles began to appear on top of the liquid. Genma continued thinking about how Iruka slept soundlessly after three continuous nights of thrashing. Genma had wiped away his feverish sweat with gentleness and care, afraid that the rough fabric of the small blue towel he used on Iruka might damage his tender skin. When he changed his clothes, he used several shadow clones to assist him so Iruka wouldn't fall on the ground or onto the bed roughly. He had taken note in the several moments when he knelt next to Iruka to wipe his neck and shoulders that he smelled something cool and tangy, something that reminded him of a flowing river or a large cool waterfalls. Something about the way his dark hair contrasted with his tanned caramel skin made him look all the more exotic even though he was just an average looking Konoha citizen in which dark hair and tanned skin were very common. Genma wondered why he liked the chuunin so much.

The smile?

_Definitely._

The hardworking streak and compassion with children?

_I think so._

The politeness?

_It's way over the limit, but maybe that's why he's so head-turning._

The body?

Before Genma could answer his own question, a loud hiss snapped him back to reality and he found the pot overflowing with now extremely hot soup which fell all over the cooking range, causing the blue flames to flicker to orange.

"Crap! Crap! _Shit_!" Genma hissed and quickly turned the knob of the gas range, turning the flame off. He then grabbed the pan, forgetting that it was burning hot and jumped back several feet, causing the bottle of juice behind him to fall with a loud thud on the kitchen floor. He was grateful that the bottle was made of plastic. He hissed several different curses and pulled out a soup spoon and began to scoop some of the liquid into a clean bowl. He placed it on a tray, along with some breadsticks and a glass of fruit juice before throwing a glare at the cooking stove and heading for his bedroom. He found Iruka with his arms around himself, looking around as if he was looking for something to hide his naked torso. Genma could feel the smirk pull at his lips again. Iruka was such a shy person!  "Here." he said and placed the tray on the side of the bed, while Iruka scooted to one side, leaning against the wall, hands tightly around the sheets, trying desperately to hide his bare torso. "Give it up, _sensei_. It's not like holding that sheet over your chest is going to hide anything. Besides, it's not like you have anything more than I do."

Iruka flushed real hard. "Uh - But - But I - Sh - Err - Uh -" He then just stopped, dropping the sheet completely and staring at his hands with embarrassment.

"Oh don't feel bad." Genma said, handing him the glass of juice. "You look nice without a shirt anyway." He teased, and damn! Genma had stripped the chuunin down to his last article of clothing and he only realized now that he was indeed _nice_ without the shirt. A few scars that had gone white were here and there. Genma noticed a rather long one in his back, between his shoulder blades which was a vivd red, indicating that it was a newly acquired one.

Iruka flushed even more and now trembled, looking completely vulnerable. "Sh-Shiranui-san. Please." Genma merely gave him a small smile and clasped Iruka's hands around the glass.

"Drink. I bet you're thirsty." Genma said.

And Iruka drank.

And Genma watched him and as he did, his imagination getting just a little bit hyper.

Iruka licked his lips as he set the glass on the tray. The cocktail flavored juice was wonderful and refreshing and his throat didn't hurt as much as it did in the beginning. He accepted the bowl of soup from Genma and helped himself to it. Iruka paled a bit when the extreme saltiness of the soup made his taste buds recoil and his throat itch. He flicked a shy glance at Genma and found the man looking at him - oh heavens!

Iruka swallowed the next spoonful of soup with plenty of difficulty. Genma was watching him in that way! In a way in which he was _NOT_ supposed to be. Iruka wondered what was so sexual about placing a spoonful of soup into his mouth. He certainly wasn't licking or sucking on the spoon. So why was Genma looking at him like that? Iruka's fingers trembled and he began to shake. He never really had sex before and never really spent much time in the company of woman to seduce or men to be seduced. He just didn't find enough time for such things. With Naruto to worry about and his job, it was simply something that he kept in the back of his mind. But why was Genma watching him that way?

"Will you please stop looking at me?" Iruka asked, not daring to remove his gaze from the soup. Genma gave a little 'eh' as he blinked out of his staring trance and his imagination cut off. "Don't look at me that way!"

"Look at you in what way?" Genma asked, a hint of teasing in his voice. But Iruka failed to notice it because he was way too flustered about being stared at like some sort of sex object. He never did consider himself pretty. He was just average. What he'd consider pretty was someone like Kurenai. A guy like Kakashi was someone to be admired, even with the mask on. But he was just plain and normal. What could possibly trigger Genma's mind to look at him that way?

Iruka did not answer Genma. He set his bowl down and pushed the sheets back. "May I use your bathroom please?"

"Sure." Genma said and pointed at the door across his. "Right there."

Iruka mumbled his thanks and all but ran to the bathroom and locked the door. He leaned against the door, the painted wood feeling cold against his bare back. He placed a hand on his pounding heart and forced himself to calm down and think rationally. He splashed cool water on his face and dried it with the towel on the rack. He then began to pace the little space in the bathroom, thinking hard. He then suddenly felt a bit airy, a bit cooler than usual. "Oh god." He squeaked and pulled out the waist of his pyjama bottoms, peering inside. He flushed beetroot. He really was indeed very naked except for the rather thin fading gray cotton pyjama bottoms. He could bet his entire month's salary that Genma could see everything through the thin fabric. And where were his clothes? "Oh god." He said with embarrassment and horror. Genma stripped his clothes off and saw him naked. Iruka banged his head gently on the tile walls over and over again. "No. No. No."

"Iruka-sensei?" Genma said, knocking on the door. "You all right in there?"

Iruka swallowed and looked for something to cover himself with. He suddenly felt very shy and very vulnerable. Genma was right about him not having anything more or less than any other male. But Iruka was not someone who liked to flaunt his rather thin figure. He was very discreet with his appearance and liked to be _covered_. It made him feel safe somewhat. "I - I'm fine." He said and turned the tap on and let the water run. He wanted to go home and stay away from Genma. Genma was a handsome young man of twenty-nine, with beautiful hazel eyes and a smug charming look about him. He was tall, had an attractive, well-kept body and he was - Iruka shook his head. He couldn't believe he was thinking of his comrade in such a way. A blush came to his face. He turned the tap off and slowly turned the lock-key of the door and slowly opened it. When he found the hall empty, he let out a sigh and wrapped his arms around himself as he stood in the middle of the hall, feeling as if his heart was in his throat. Genma took care of him all this time...

"Iruka-sensei?" Genma asked out of nowhere and poor Iruka jumped, taking several steps back until he came into contact with wall. His knees buckled under him and he slid to the ground, arms still around his slender body. Genma was beside him immediately, hands on his bare shoulders, hazel eyes peering at him with worry. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Iruka said and tried to shrink away from the hands on his shoulders.

"I didn't mean to startle you." Genma said and rubbed his shoulders. "Come on. Let's get you back to bed." Iruka trembled suddenly and swallowed the lump in his throat.

"I - I'd rather not." Iruka said.

"My, my. Are you afraid of me?" Genma asked, a bit surprised. Iruka did not answer. "Iruka, I won't hurt you."

Iruka's eyes narrowed and looked at him. "Why should I trust you? You come to me, yelling curses in my face and -and - and - you - you've got some guts to - to - take my clothes off and - and -" Genma gave a little chuckle. "How could you?" Iruka asked, sounding broken. "I - I know I'm just a chuunin and I - I'm a lot weaker than you, but I'm human too. I have feelings." Genma stared at him in silence. "Where are my clothes? I'd like to go home."

"No." Genma flatly said. "You're not going anywhere."

"How dare you?!" Iruka said, eyes blazing with anger that it made Genma blink.

"Because if I let you go home, you'll attempt to get back to work and you'll end up getting sicker." Genma said.

"If it's substitution you're so worried about, then I promise you that I won't let it get in your way." Iruka said.

Genma then got a dawning look on his face. "Y - you!" He said, looking at Iruka with wide eyes. "You haven't been feeling well for a long time! Y - You!"

Iruka pushed his hands off his shoulders and stood up. "Where are my clothes?" He demanded, completely losing his cool. "Please, Shiranui-san, where are my clothes?"

"You were sick all along!" Genma said, sounding as if he were accusing Iruka.

"Where are my clothes?" Iruka demanded again.

"All this time!" Genma said, and stared at him with even more respect reflecting in his eyes.

"Please!" Iruka pleaded. " Please let me go home. Please!"

Genma could not refuse the downcast look on Iruka's face, the shaking shoulders and the trembling hands. "I'll get them. But you have to promise me one thing." Iruka looked up at him. "You won't try to go to work for the next seven days." Iruka threw him a glare. "I won't let you go unless you do. If I have to tie you to the bed I will do so."

Iruka pondered on it for a while and finally nodded. "All right. I - I p-p-promise."

Genma gave a nod and disappeared in to the bedroom and handed him his clothes. "Here." Iruka dressed up quickly in the bathroom and headed for the door. When he emerged, he found Genma dressed up as well, a shawl in his arms. "Let me take you home." Iruka saw that he had no escaping in this one so he just gave a small-resigned nod. As he headed for the door, he felt Genma wrap the shawl around his shoulders and lead him to the streets outside. Iruka reached his apartment in ten minutes flat and suddenly felt safe once he stepped in. Genma did not enter but remained by the doorway. "Don't forget your word."

"I won't" Iruka said. Genma nodded and turned to leave. "Sh-Shiranui-san." Genma stopped and turned to face him. "Uh - th-thank you."

Genma gave him a smile and Iruka felt his cheeks heat up. Genma looked so handsome. "Don't worry about it. I was glad to take care of you."

Iruka remembered the coffee incident. "Wh-Why are you so nice to me? I - I nearly burned your skin off."

Genma continued to smile at him as he turned and headed down the hallway. "Because you're nice, Iruka."

Iruka remained rooted to the spot as Genma vanished down the hall. His face colored in to a deeper shade of red.

It was also then he noticed that Genma hadn't taken his shawl back.

TBC

Yay! What will happen now? Woot! Tell me any suggestions so that I may type the next chapter ASAP.

Adios!


	8. Part 8 Beautifully Shocking!

Okay, I was listening to Aerosmith's 'Do it like a lady' when I wrote this chapter! Nya! Head banging while typing ain't good for you. Oh umm, as for Iruka's outfit, I'd like you all to imagine something close to Youji's mission outfit. It's pretty close to that.

I dedicate this chapter to b4k4girl! Not only do I love this person, but she also did the nicest thing in beta-reading this chapter for me! So yay! Also, when I got this chapter by e-mail, I had the most baffling look on my face when I read her comments on this chapter – and you guys will get my meaning as you read on – so therefore, this chapter goes to her! Wai!

Enjoy!

**FAINT 8**

True to his word, Iruka took the blessed seven days to allow his body to recuperate  from all the stress and fatigue. He used the time to eat healthily, exercise and train longer and harder and by the end of the entire week, he looked and felt good. His skin had some sort of glow and his body felt lighter and much fitter. He was thankful that he made that promise to Genma. He hardly knew the person, save for the fact that he was older than himself, was a skilled Jounin, chewed on a needle for some reason and was burnt by an entire pitcher full of coffee! Judging from the fact that he took care of him while he was ill showed honor and respect and somewhere under all that I'm-cool-and-composed attitude was a caring person. And he seemed to like to swear openly!

Iruka ran the comb through his hair and pulled it up into its usual sprouted ponytail. He tied his forehead protector on, grabbed his lesson plan book, keys and wallet and jogged towards the academy. He had heard that Genma and Asuma were the ones filling in for him. It wasn't unusual for Asuma to take his classes during his absence, but he was _very_ surprised that Genma bothered at all. The man seemed to have a natural hatred of teaching kids and taking substitutes. He made that extremely clear!

Iruka entered the classroom and found the kids cowering away from a certain Jounin who was standing in front of them, arms crossed across his chest and giving them his darkest look. Iruka hid behind the doorframe and watched with interest.

"What do you mean you twits didn't do your homework? If Iruka made you stand in the corner of the class because you didn't do it then, well, that's a bit too mild don't you think? You four in the last row, you five in the corner and you six in front, out in the field! NOW!" Genma snapped and the kids he pointed at lined up by the doorway. Iruka masked himself using a simple genjutsu and watched as Genma walked behind the kids and towards the field. As he passed by Iruka, he stared at the spot that was supposed to be a wall, smirked and continued on towards the field. Iruka followed them outside and watched from the barbed-wire fence as the kids plastered annoyed scowls on their little faces. "Right, run around the field four hundred times. If you stop in the middle, you'll start from lap one all over again!"

"Why are you so mean to us?" One of the boys snapped. Genma gave him a raised eyebrow. "Iruka-sensei is way better than you!"

"Well, Iruka-sensei is too nice for you annoying twits! So I'm going to toughen things up a bit. Don't think that just because Iruka-sensei returns soon that you'll be off the hook! I'll be keeping an eye on you brats!" Genma said, and then proceeded to nibble at his needle.

"Why? It's not like you're his mom or dad or something!" One of the kids said hotly. "And you're not his boyfriend!"

Genma gave him an 'Oh! Is that so?' look. "Well, then maybe I WILL become his boyfriend so I can make you brats run around the entire village instead of just this field!" The kids gave him wide-eyed looks. "Now get moving!" He snapped and the kids began to run, not daring to stop. Iruka felt his cheeks heat up and took a step back to head for the classroom when he suddenly bumped into Genma himself. Iruka looked at the field and noticed the shadow clone Genma left behind. "Hello, _sensei_!"

Iruka swallowed and nodded. "Good morning, Shiranui-san."

"You look good today!" Genma said, giving him a smirk as Iruka looked away, feeling extremely embarrassed and shy at the same time. "Do you feel better?"

"Yes, thank you." Iruka said and stepped back, feeling the rough wall behind him. Genma took a step forward, brows creasing. "Well, I - I must say, that was an effective way of g-giving them a lesson."

"Yeah, they're pretty annoying." Genma said, shrugging. "Don't teach class today. Start tomorrow. If you have some reports to do, then just do that or something. I'll take care of these brats for a while."

"R-Right. I - I - g - good to see you. I better g - get going." Iruka stammered and quickly made his way into the academy building and into the staff room.

He found the room empty and a pile of reports ready and waiting for him to give his attention to. He leaned against the door and pressed his palm on his chest.

Why was he so flustered when around Genma anyway?

_Maybe because he saw you naked._

Iruka flushed red at his own thoughts and unconsciously wrapped his arms around himself and proceeded to tackle the reports.

XXX

Once the class was dismissed, Raido approached Genma with a grin on his face. "Yo! You have a mission! The Hokage wants to see you. Have you seen Iruka?"

"Mission? And what about Iruka?" Genma asked, shoving some papers into an envelope and placing it in one of the shelves of the classroom. Raido gave out a giggle. Genma looked at him with a suspicious eye. "What?" Genma hissed dangerously.

"Oh, I'd rather not say it. I think the Hokage would do a better job." Raido shrugged. "Anyway, she's waiting for you in her office. I'm off to find Iruka."

Genma rolled his eyes as Raido disappeared with a poof then lazily made his way towards the Hokage's office. Upon reaching the doors, he nodded in greeting at the two ANBU guards and knocked. Tsunade gave him a 'come in' from within and he entered to find Iruka already standing before the Hokage, hands twiddling together in agitation and unease.

"Ah! Genma!" Tsunade said, a twinkle in her eye. She had an awfully wide smile on her face and seemed to be very excited and giddy about something. "He'll be your partner in this mission. I think the two of you will do just fine. Besides, it is to my understanding that Sandaime trusted you with A-ranked missions, am I correct?" Iruka gave a polite nod. "Good! Well, here's everything you'll need to prepare for. I suggest you get started. I will brief Genma about his half of the job."

"Yes, Hokage-sama. Good day." Iruka disappeared in a swirl, leaving Genma with Tsunade.

Genma did not _dare_ say anything. He waited for Tsunade to speak. She had a grin on her face. "Well? Aren't you going to ask about anything?"

Genma shook his head. "I don't want to know."

"But you have to!" Tsunade said, and tossed him a scroll. "Those are the things you'll need to gather. Oh and I suggest you find suitable clothing for the occasion. It's not really a very tough mission, more of a C-rank actually. So, there won't be a lot of activity. Just a lot of stealing." Genma opened the scroll and scanned the contents. "But I still suggest you be careful because there will be some jounins there as well. From other villages, know what I mean?"

"_A GAY BAR?_" Genma asked, blanching at the scroll and staring at Tsunade as if she'd lost her mind completely. "_A **GAY BAR**?_"

"What's wrong with a gay bar?" Tsunade asked. "It's a mission." She studied her nails. "And we're getting paid quite a lot from a new customer. He seems to be in need of the cash that bar is making and their legal documents. Probably for blackmail. But well, the money is good. We like the money, don't we?"

"You're asking me to go to a GAY BAR!" Genma snapped, gripping the scroll.

Tsunade seemed to be very amused by his reaction. "Yes, and with Iruka too. Now isn't that lovely?"

"You're getting a kick out of this, aren't you?" Genma hissed, glaring at her, forgetting that she was the Hokage.

"Look, Genma." Tsunade said, sighing. "Take this as a chance. I can tell you now that you're not the only one after Iruka's ass."

"I AM NOT AFTER HIS ASS!" An explosion of snickers echoed from outside the door. Genma scowled at the twin swinging wooden doors, hoping that the ANBU guards would freeze and die.

"Why not? It's pretty cute!" Tsunade said in a singsong voice.

"Fine, it's cute! But that's not the point!" Genma said, completely losing his cool. More snickers sounded from behind the door. "Can you excuse me for one second?" Tsunade raised both eyebrows and watched with stifled giggles as Genma made his way to the door, pulled it open and stared at the masked ANBU guards. "What is your problem? Yeah, he has a cute ass! Nice and tanned! You're just jealous because YOU CAN'THAVE IT! It's mine! Now shut it and beat it before I bitchslap you so hard that you'll see more stars than the Hubble telescope! And stop eavesdropping, you shitheads!" Genma walked back in, slammed the doors closed and stood before Tsunade, as if he had said nothing.

Tsunade looked down, bit her lip and tried very hard not to laugh. "So, judging from that, I assume you accept?" Genma sighed resignedly. "Good! When you get back, let's have a nice round of poker eh?"

Genma nodded and offered her a forced smile. "Yeah, sure."

Tsunade nodded and waved at him happily. "Good luck." She then sniggered. "You'll need it."

XXX

When Tsunade said that he'll need it, she was very, very, very right. Genma stood in front of Iruka, eyes threatening to pop out of their sockets. It was an undercover mission and Genma was given instructions to dress fairly moderate, which meant a pair of dark slacks, boots and a loose white cotton shirt with a long leather coat and a loose tie to top it all off. Iruka however -

Genma swallowed. "Are you sure you can move? It looks too..._tight_." Genma could feel the heat rising up to his neck and face.

"It is." Iruka said, and tugged at the collar. He was wearing a pair of low-slung leather pants that rode his narrow hips and a tank top that showed his entire stomach and exposed his shoulders and arms. If he made a slight movement like raising his arms, the top would ride up higher and expose more skin. He had a pair of boots on and a coat in his arms, and leather straps wrapped around one arm, giving him an all the more exotic look. His hair was left down, tumbling around his shoulders, and, to finish it all off, a tight black collar around his neck. It was just a plain band but around his neck, Genma couldn't help but stare. "Please don't look at me that way. I'm very uncomfortable as it is."

"Sorry. It's just that-" Genma looked away.

"Yes, I know. I look really silly." Iruka gave a chuckle. "Hokage-sama was the one who chose the outfit, not me."

Genma gritted his teeth. Tsunade really was getting a kick out of this. "Well, let's get going then. Are you cold?"

"The outfit is very exposing, so YES, I AM!." Iruka pulled on his leather coat and zipped it closed. "Let's go!"

XXX

The bar was filled with men dressed in loose, exposing clothes, mixtures of leather and vinyl. The smell of vodka and wine tinted the air, along with sweat and the beat of loud dance music. Iruka and Genma walked in, the lady by the door offering to take their coats to hang them. Genma was very aware of the several looks thrown at Iruka as he pulled his coat off and gave the lady a smile, who blushed prettily. Genma threw the men who stared at Iruka's butt with drooling-looks his most evil glare as they made their way to the bar counter. Genma ordered light drinks and watched the dancers on the floor moving and sliding against each other.

"Busy night, isn't it?" Iruka said to the burly man managing the bar.

"Yeah, it is." The man said, wiping a glass with a white cloth and stacking it on the shelf before picking up another one. "Haven't seen you two around here before. You a couple or something?"

"Friends." Iruka said. "My name is Ishida. This is Gon." He gestured to Genma who merely nodded in greeting.

"Ah! I see." The barman said, grinning to reveal a golden tooth. "So what brings you two here on this lovely evening? Most of the men here come to either escape tiresome marriages or just for a little thrill!"

"We go around. From bar to bar. Just to kill stress." Genma answered while shaking his glass, the ice within clinking together.

"Really now?" The barman said. Clapping sounds erupted and the three turned to look at the dance floor as a man in a combination outfit of formal and leather clothes bowed and the music blared again. Genma and Iruka blinked at the sight and barman sighed, before chuckling. "That's the owner's son, Kaede Hajime. One hell of a playboy. He comes at this time to make sure all payment is stored in the vault. He's VERY popular with the boys around here."

Iruka and Genma looked at each other. Iruka turned his back to his drink when someone slid in to the bar stool beside him, a hand giving the skin around his hips a nice grope and sliding touch. "Oh!" Iruka said, jumping a bit then finding a handsome young man beside him, the one who was just seconds ago bowing to his audience.

"Hello there." He said, voice deep and teasing. "Haven't seen you around here before. Newbie?"

Genma bit his lip to stop the hiss and scowl from coming. The man's hands were now sliding down to Iruka's ass. Genma felt his lips twitch in annoyance. How dare he? The man was attractive, Genma admitted. He had long light brown hair with long and charming bangs. His eyes were a bright shade of green and he had a creamy smooth complexion. A prettyboy and a playboy. And he still had his hands on Iruka's butt!

"Yes. It's a very nice club." Iruka commented offering the man a smile.

"Want to dance?" Kaede asked.

"Sure."

XXX

Genma felt extremely hot. He was pretty sure that he was fine a few minutes ago before Iruka started dancing. He was pretty sure that the temperature was pretty cool before Iruka started dancing. He was pretty sure that 'Little Willy' wasn't so twitchy before Iruka started dancing. That Iruka! He was one HELL of a dancer!

Iruka swayed his hips slowly against his partner, arms in the air as his torso moved in sync from side to side with the raving music. Kaede, the owner's son, was all over him. They looked like they were glued together and Genma was really, really having problems with 'Little Willy' now. Iruka was now sliding his hands up and down Kaede's waist, who was looking like as if he was on cloud nine. Who wouldn't? Iruka looked _hot_ in leather and the scar across the bridge of his nose made him look even sexier. His top rode higher and higher, exposing more of the smooth tanned skin. Iruka was beginning to perspire from all the heat and movement and damn! Genma really had a major problem with 'Little Willy'.

Only when Iruka threw him a look and pulled out a keycard from Kaede's pocket did Genma finally snap out of it. Iruka whispered something into Kaede's ear that made the man grin widely and take his hand in his. They passed by Genma and Iruka slipped him the keycard.

Mission start!

TBC


	9. Part 9 Admitting?

I've taken a few quotes from the story "SIDE EFFECTS" by Risu-chan (I hope I spelt it right) because I think she's a pure genius when it comes to sarcastic-description. I couldn't help it! I bow to her talents! I suggest all KakaIru fans read her fic. It rocks!

A big thanks to b4k4girl for beta-reading this chapter! Lookie! She even made me a fanart of Iruka and Genma's outfit! I don't know if it's already up in her deviantart account, but ask her anyway. It's super CUTE! I love it!

Enjoy!

**FAINT 9**

Genma found the vault fairly easily. He saw Iruka and Kaede vanish behind a sliding wooden door and prayed that Iruka would be okay. He knew that Iruka had a dagger on the side of his boot under his pant-leg, but he was still worried. Iruka didn't look as if he could manage some sort of sexual assault.

Genma did a few quick seals and let loose a genjutsu around the place. He then began to unlock the vault and found the place stuffed with not only cash but bars of gold. He gave a little whistle and did a few quick seals and conjured up five clones. They pulled out the folded bags tied to the side of their boots and began to empty the place. Genma found a folder on a metal shelf in one corner and flicked through it. He found the information he needed in the folder, took out the important transaction papers and bank account notice and legal papers and slipped it into the bag. He motioned for his clones to gather at the edge of town while he went to fetch Iruka.

As he made his way towards the door he saw Iruka vanish into, he pulled out a whistle from his pocket, blew on it once and then heard a muffled 'oomph' then silence from within. He entered and found Iruka pulling the leather shirt from under Kaede's unconscious body.

"You all right?" Genma asked, concerned.

"I'm fine. The guy ripped my shirt." He said, showing the leather piece ripped in half. "What a waste."

Genma blinked and stared at Kaede. Iruka knelt beside him and he watched as Iruka began to undo his clothes. "What are you doing?"

"Don't want to make anything look suspicious right?" Iruka said and stood back once he had Kaede's clothes in a suitably disarrayed state, resembling the look of post-coital disarray . "Did you get everything?"

"Yes. Let's get out of here." Genma said and they made their way to the exit, took their coats and vanished into the night,

XXX

After delivering the dough and papers to the men they were supposed to meet by the village entrance, Genma and Iruka finally headed for their homes. Iruka wrapped his arms around his body, fighting off the chill that he was feeling due to not wearing a top under his coat.

"Well, mission accomplished." Genma said.

"Yes." Iruka said, nodding and giving Genma a smile. "It's been a tiring night." Iruka said, stopping at the detour to take a left that would lead to his home.

"Totally. With you dancing the way you did, I wouldn't be surprised if you dropped dead on your bed." Genma said, smirking at the blush that appeared on Iruka's cheeks.

"Yes, well -" Iruka stuttered. "Undercover missions require you to learn a lot of things." He said, and he spoke from experience from all the undercover missions he'd been through. Being a skilled assassin and thief requires squishing pride and actually stooping down at the same time, doing things that you normally wouldn't. Iruka grasped his coat tighter around his body.

"Iruka?" Genma asked and the chuunin looked up and blinked, waiting for him to speak. Genma could feel his heart hammering in his chest. He could say it right there and right now and ask for a date or say what he felt. "I think I finally understand why Sandaime trusted you so much. You can handle almost any situation."

_Coward._

"Thank you." Iruka said and smiled at him, pushing back his hair behind his ears as a gust of wind blew against them. "I'm very honored to have gone on a mission with you, though as simple and silly it is." He chuckled. "I'll file in the report tomorrow."

"Right." Genma nodded and stared at Iruka some more.

"Shiranui-san? Is something wrong?" Iruka queried, worry lacing his features.

"No. Nothing's wrong. Good night, Iruka." Genma said and gave him a small smile.

"Good night." Iruka replied, smiling.

They then parted ways, with Genma blushing as he remembered Iruka dancing.

XXX

Genma wanted to bash Raido on the head with nin-sandal till kingdom came. The man had been sniggering ever since he saw Genma that morning. They had gate watch duty and a mission that evening to deliver an important document to the _Kazekage_.

"It's either silence or Armageddon, chucklehead!" Genma finally snapped at Raido.

"Sorry." Raido said and tried to look serious but he suddenly burst out laughing so hard that Genma was really, really tempted to do the _Katon Karyu Endan_ on the scarred man till he was nothing but barbeque. "Sorry, Genma. Seriously, I just can't help myself."

"Care to share the joke?" Genma asked, glaring even harder.

Raido finally ceased laughing a few minutes later and started to stare at the sky before turning to look at Genma. "So did you have any problems with little Willy last night? I heard Iruka looked _very_ _sexy_."

Genma pulled one of his sandals off and hit Raido on the back of the head with it.

XXX

Genma had a very visible frown on his face as he headed back from the Sand Village with a very, very happily grinning and teasing Raido beside him.

"Hokage-sama said that you looked like you were about to catch fire watching Iruka dance. She did throw in a few comments about Iruka being a very good dancer. She also said that if it wasn't for the age difference, she would have made Iruka her lover and sex slave!" Raido dodged the _senbon_ that was aimed for his temple. "I agree with her, but I'm dating Maya now, so I can't really snag Iruka for myself. He does look very nice in leather, doesn't he?" Raido dodged the little branch that Genma threw at him. "Anko has been babbling about how she wanted to pinch Iruka's butt over and over again because it was so cute!"

"If you had even the faintest trace of honor and decency in your hideously deformed gimp-mobile of a rat-runt's diseased carcass, you would immediately perform an act of ritual Hara-kiri by disemboweling yourself with a serrated Bowie knife while sitting in a pit of burning gasoline in attempted atonement for being such an asshole and so-called 'understanding' friend." Genma snapped, the gates of the village coming to a closer view, but Raido ignored what he said and continued to yap away about what the Hokage told them.

Genma merely sighed as they entered the village with a babbling Raido beside him. He could have sworn that Raido's mouth was so big that he could eat a banana sideways.

XXX

Iruka entered the office, where Kakashi was reading his book, Gai talking to Asuma and Kurenai, Anko eating sweets and Genma playing poker with Raido with cookies as the stakes. Iruka merely gave them a polite greeting before bending and lifting the box off the ground that contained several folders that required his attention.

The box in his hand dropped with a loud thud and a very undignified squeal escaped his lips as he jumped back and placed his hands protectively on his backside. Anko stood in front of him, grinning.

"What a nice ass! It's so cute!" Anko gushed and quickly used her Jounin skills to get behind Iruka and give it another pinch and squeeze.

"Anko-san!" Iruka said, yelping and standing behind her. "It hurts!" He complained, rubbing it to soothe the pain of the aftermath of the pinching. He completely forgot that there was a nice audience watching the entire time. "Please stop doing that!"

"But Iruka-chan!" Anko whined. Then she gaped. "You mean you've never had your butt pinched or groped before? I am shocked! Who in their right minds would NOT want to grope it? It's SO cute!" Iruka frowned at what Anko said. Who in their right minds would WANT to grope it in the first place? "Hey Iruka, let's go out on a date."

"NO!" Genma stood up and glared fiercely at Anko.

Everyone who was watching Iruka get flustered about having his backside pinched and groped by a very happy Anko now turned to the seething Genma. Iruka quickly began to gather the folders and silently made his way out of the office and out of reach from Anko's wiggly hands, thankful for Genma's interruption.

XXX

Anko glared fiercely at Genma. "What do you mean, no?"

"I mean no." Genma said. "He's taken."

"By who? You?" Anko asked, raising an eyebrow. "I don't see any label on Iruka saying, _property of Shiranui Genma! Do not touch!_ Kiss my ass, Genma." She said, voice rising up a bit.

"A person with a low IQ should have a low voice too." Genma said and this made Kakashi snigger and earn a nice roll of newspaper smack on his face.

"You looked very intelligent until you opened your mouth." Anko shot back hotly.

Raido sniggered and it quickly turned in to groan when Genma kicked him in the shins. "I've come across decomposed bodies that are less offensive that you are!" Genma retorted.

Anko twisted her lips. "You should be arrested for _trying_ to impersonate a human being!"

The two began a battle of insults. Then it turned to into an impressive litany of profanity, obscenity and general paint-peeling vitriol. From cursing it went to name calling then went back to insulting each other's characters and then just randomly insulting anything or everything about each other. Asuma, Kurenai, Gai and Kakashi were very amused and actually made mental notes of the rather lovely insults that they found amusing coming from the two.

"You remind me of a lawn mower. You're hard to get started, emit foul odors and don't work half the time!" Genma hissed.

"Next time you shave, could you stand a little closer to the razor?" Anko asked sarcastically and kicked Asuma on the shins for sniggering.

"I get more pleasure from running my nostrils down a cactus than being with you!" Genma hissed back, whacking Kakashi on the head as he started to fall into fits of hilarity.

"You are the kind of person who, when one first meets you, one doesn't like you. But when one gets to know you better, one hates you." Anko said smartly, crossing her arms across her chest.

"You're so lazy, that if you woke up with nothing to do today, you'd go to bed with it only half done!" Genma snapped.

"You're so lazy, you don't walk in your sleep, you hitchhike!" Anko fired back. Genma was about to fire another insult but Anko made him stop dead when she asked him. "Is Genma-san jealous because I asked Iruka-chan to a date?"

Genma felt his blood run cold.

Was he?

TBC


	10. Part 10 Asking

More and more GenIru goodies! I love this chapter! I love Raido! Wah!

Thanks to b4k4girl for beta-reading this chapter. Phew!

Enjoy minna!

FAINT 10 

"I am not jealous!" Genma said.

"Denial." Anko said in a dramatic voice. Genma was really loosing his temper. Iruka really made him loose his cool. He was _never_ like this until that coffee incident! Genma was ready to strangle Anko with his bare hands when her next words made him freeze. "Fine, if you're not in denial, march up to him right now and ask him out! Go on! Ask him out if you're so intent in me not taking him out on a date and having my way with that cute butt of his."

"Oh yeah." Kakashi whispered grinning. Gai and Asuma exchanged looks while Kurenai merely smiled and Raido rolled on the floor with fits of wheezing hilarity.

"Fine!" Genma said, and walked towards the door. "I will!"

Everyone gaped as they watched Genma leave the door.

"So who says he won't do it?" Anko said, waving a five Konoha-dollar bill.

XXX

Genma walked towards Iruka's classroom and knocked, hearing the chuunin from within give him a signal to enter. He entered and found Iruka picking up a folder from the box beside him.

"Shiranui-san, what can I do for you?" Iruka asked, smiling up at him.

Genma suddenly felt his tongue missing. He willed himself to push the words out of his mouth. "Are you busy tonight?" Iruka blinked.

"I don't think so. Is something wrong Shiranui-san?" Iruka asked, noticing how Genma was standing so frigidly still and all tensed up.

"Would you join me for dinner?" Genma asked and watched with sudden amusement as Iruka's cheeks colored.

But Iruka smiled politely and nodded. "I'd love too."

Genma smiled back at him and nodded. "Great. I'll pick you up at seven."

"All right."

XXX

Raido grinned wickedly as he held his hand out, waiting for Gai, Kurenai, Asuma, Kakashi and Anko to pay him. Once a good sum of twenty-five dollars was in his palm he grinned even more.

"I told you he'd ask him out."

The five merely grumbled.

XXX

Genma was in a very good mood. He was going to have dinner with his lovely Iruka tonight and he wanted it to go well! If it weren't for Anko, he would have never had the courage to ask Iruka out.

He was very happy indeed!

XXX

Genma was nervous. Whatever happiness he felt earlier that day has morphed completely in to nervousness. He was standing in front of Iruka's classroom and he could hear Iruka clear up his table and place things in the drawers.

He swallowed his nervousness and knocked.

"Come in." Iruka called from within and found Genma enter through the door. "Ah, Shiranui-san."

"Ready?"

"Yes, I'll just put these folders way." Iruka said, tucking them in to the bottom drawer of his desk. He then smiled at Genma, done with his work for the day.

"Do you like sea food, Iruka?" Genma asked.

"Yes." Iruka nodded.

"Great. Shall we go?" Genma said, giving Iruka a smile.

XXX

Seated in the soft cushion chairs of the booth, the two waited for their orders. Iruka was feeling very shy all of a sudden. Genma was busy watching him turn several shades of red, a smirk on his face.

"How was your day?" Iruka said, trying to make small talk.

"It was –" Genma, remembered his exchange with Anko. "Fine. How are the kids?"

"They are asking about you." He said and then suddenly blushed. "They're wondering if you were really serious about having them run around the village as punishment for no homework."

"You should have said yes!" Genma said, smirking even wider.

"Well, I –" Iruka stuttered. Thankfully their order came and they both tucked in to their dishes.

"So how come you're not a Jounin?" Genma asked.

"I wanted to teach at the academy." He said, dipping a piece of shrimp in to the spicy sweet and sour sauce beside him.

"Really? I admire you, you know? Handling that lot. I don't know how you survive." Genma said, scooping some rice in to his mouth.

"You get used to it as time goes by." Iruka said, smiling.

They talked about anything and everything – politics, war strategies, jutsus, literature, music, history, likes and dislikes. Even as they finished their meals and was heading for home, they chatted on and on, completely enjoying each other's company. When they reached Iruka's building, Genma gave him a genuine smile.

"Tonight was great. I enjoyed it a lot. You're a great person when you're not carrying pitchers of coffee and a mountain of files." Genma joked.

Iruka's face laced with guilt. "Is your shoulder still hurting?"

"Oh, Iruka. I was just joking. No it's fine. Really." Genma said, patting his formerly burned side. "I had fun tonight."

Iruka was still worried but gave him a smile then he blushed. "M-Me too."

"Join me for lunch tomorrow?" Genma asked hopefully.

"I'd love to." Iruka said and smiled him.

"Great." Genma smiled. "See you tomorrow."

XXX

When Iruka entered his classroom the next morning, he found a flock of students around his table. He frowned and immediately the crowd parted and Iruka gaped.

On his desk was a bright and very red bouquet of fresh roses.

"W – W – Wha -?" Iruka dropped the lesson plan book he was holding and quickly caught himself and picked it up.

"Sensei! Look! Flowers!"

"Sensei has a lover!"

"Sensei has an admirer!"

"Go for it sensei!"

There were fits of giggles as Iruka approached the table and noticed the card in between the fresh roses. Just as he thought, it was from the Yamanaka flower shop. He plucked the card and opened it and flushed redder than the roses on his table.

Sorry, Iruka, but I have a mission today and I might return late tonight. I'll take a rain check with our lunch date. Maybe, let's say tomorrow or the day after?

The roses are for you! Hope they cheer you up!

Always,

Genma

Iruka inhaled shakily and stared at the roses for a long, long while and this made the entire class giggle even more. Then he felt a sudden surge of happiness as butterflies fluttered in his stomach. In his good mood, he gave the class the entire class half the day off. As the children exited the class, happily chattering away, Iruka heard one of the kids speak to her classmate.

"Genma-san should always give Iruka-sensei flowers! He looks so happy!"

"And we get half the day off!"

Iruka took one look at the flowers and blushed again, burying his face in his hands.

TBC


	11. Part 11 Teasing

Yo! Wow! Everyone is actually liking this pairing! I'm so happy! Yes! It's a success! Yosh! Thank you for all your reviews minna! I'm glad to be of service in the entertaining-yaoi world! Yay!

A big thank you to b4k4girl for beta-reading this for me. Also, today is actually update day, and if you notice, I usually update ALL my fics in one day. Unfortunately, I am yet to receive the beta-read version of "Because you never knew" and a new KakaIru fic called "Ju-on". Once I get those, I will do an update ASAP. Gomen na, minna!

Anyhoo, on with the story!

FAINT 11 

Iruka blinked at the sight of a white rose lying the middle of his open lesson plan book. Genma returned from his mission safe and sound and he did take a rain check on their lunch date. Two days later, Genma took him to a nice restaurant and he had the best roast beef to fill his stomach. Ever since then, a day did not pass where Iruka would not see a rose or carnation on his table. Once, a small yellow wrapped toffee lay beside a daisy.

Genma was very nice to him. He spoke to him gently, avoided swearing, helped him with his work and dragged him home whenever Iruka had intentions of over working himself again. They also had dinner or lunch together often. Iruka was very aware of the snickers he got from people and how his students giggled whenever they saw Genma.

He placed the rose aside as the students began to pour in to the classroom. He didn't want to admit it out loud but the flowers really did make him feel happy inside. Kind of warm and fuzzy and all fluttery! Iruka began to explain the elemental jutsus and then gave them some notes on seal combinations.

As he was writing a few notes in his plan book, a hand shot up from one of his students and he looked up. "Yes, Shiro?"

"Anou, does Iruka-sensei love Genma-san?" The boy asked.

Iruka felt the pen in his fingers slip and fall with a light thump on his desk, before rolling off and falling to the ground. Iruka caught himself and stood up to pick his pen up. He gave his curious student a puzzled look.

"He is a good friend." Iruka answered.

"Oh." Shiro said and rubbed his chin. "So, so, does that mean he is not going to _fuck_ you?"

Iruka felt his blood freeze. "Watch your tongue you man!"

"But – But I didn't say anything." Shiro trembled not sure if the words in his sentence were bad. He didn't really understand the full meaning of the word _fuck_ since he was just repeating what he heard.

"Don't ever say that word in my presence again! Better yet, don't ever say it at all!" Iruka snapped. "Where did you hear such a thing from?"

"The part about Genma-san not going to _fuck_ you? I heard a guy with a mask and big white-afro hair thing talking to a guy with a scar on his face. They were talking about how Genma-san could get in to many positions and give you one hell of a good oragi – oragan – umm –" Shiro rubbed his chin in deep thought.

Iruka understood quickly. "Pack up class and go home! Don't forget your homework!"

The class left excitedly and left Iruka seething on his feet. White afro and a mask? Who else has such a thing anyway?

XXX

Kakashi was snickering with Raido. "Oh yes, I know Genma. He's a real romantic at heart." Kakashi said. "Imagine the two of them shagging. _Oh Genma! Yes! Yes! Harder, give it to me harder! Oh yeah!_"

Raido was laughing so hard with Kakashi that neither heard the door slide open sharply and a seething chuunin walk over until Kakashi was off his chair and cradling an almost broken jaw.

"Iruka!" Raido gaped at the sight of a crumbled Kakashi who was groaning. Neither knew that the chuunin possessed such speed and strength.

"And you must be the scarred man Shiro was talking about!" Iruka said in an overly sweet and polite tone.

"Huh?" Was all Raido could say before the roll of newspaper lying in the nearby desk came to contact at the back of his head painfully.

"You two should be ashamed of yourselves! Talking about sex and orgasm and positions in a place where kids can parrot you! What were you thinking? How dare you? How dare the both of you talk about Genma having a nice _fuck_ with me? HOW DARE YOU? You have no right! No _fucking _right!" Iruka was so angry and desperate and sad and annoyed and embarrassed that he could feel his eyes prickling with tears. "You!" He pointed at Raido who was now looking very guilty. "You call yourself Genma's friend? Shame on you! Talking about things like that behind his back! How could you?" He then turned to Kakashi who was not sitting up and rubbing his jaw. "And you sick twisted _person_! You don't even know me! You've got some nerve to speak about me in that way! And what gave you that perverted assumption that Genma and I were sleeping together? Damnit, what were you thinking?"

By the doorway, Kurenai was standing staring wide eyed. She dared not move from her spot. Iruka never ever swore or spoke in such a way. And for him to do so now, it must mean that he was really, really pissed off.

"You, sick, sick people!" Iruka gave a gritted growl and turned around leaving the two stunned men.

Kurenai quickly stepped away and let Iruka walk down the hall, fists by his sides clenched together tightly. Kurenai stepped in and closed the door, and folded her arms across her chest and stared at the two.

The door slid open and Genma stepped in. "Greetings people!" He said, obviously in a good mood. No one replied and a frown came to his face. He approached Raido who was nursing the lump at the back of his head, a painful look on his face. He noticed Kakashi had pulled his mask down and was dabbing his broken lip with a tissue, cheek now bruising in a very ugly manner. "What happened?"

Kurenai shook her head. "These two were talking about you and Iruka shagging each other."

"_YOU FUCKING WHAT?_" Genma snapped, glaring at the two jounins before him.

"One of Iruka's students heard and asked him about it. He just left a few minutes ago after giving them a piece of his mind." Kurenai explained.

Genma said nothing, instead he turned to look at Raido, a tired and resigned look on his face. Raido suddenly felt very, very hurt. He waited for Genma to say anything or even just swear but nothing came. Just a very tired and sighing look. Genma tore his gaze away from him and walked out the room.

Raido brought both his hands to his face and swore.

XXX

Iruka lay on his bed, shirtless with an arm thrown over his head. He was gritting his teeth as he tried to calm down, tears of anger and shame and hurt running down the corners of his eyes. He had been so angry that he vented his frustrations on the things in his room. The mirror was cracked, the bed sheets disarray, the pillows in shreds, clothes were thrown everywhere and event eh stuffed dolphin Naruto got him last year was lying under the window on one side.

Iruka bit his lower lip and placed his arm down, staring at the ceiling. He sat up and stared at his room. His eyes fell on the stuffed dolphin that was lying under the window and he stood up, picked the stuffed animal from the ground and took it out with him to the living room. He sat on the couch, the stuffed animal beside him.

A loud knock sounded from the door. "Oi! Iruka-sensei!"

A smile quickly quirked his lips and jumped up to open the door. He found Naruto grinning up at him. "Naruto!"

"Look what I got you!" Naruto said, holding up a mug with a cartoonish drawing of a dolphin with a smile jumping in a blue wave. There was a message saying _You Rock_. Iruka stared at the mug and at the message then at Naruto grinning happily up at him. Iruka felt the tears cloud his eyes and trickle down his cheeks. Naruto blinked and stared up at him. "Ne? Ne? Iruka-sensei? You don't like it?" A worried look came to Naruto's face.

"No, it's beautiful Naruto." He said, and enveloped him a tight hug. "Oh god, Naruto." He smiled as he held the little boy tight.

"So you like it?" Naruto asked, holding the mug up to him.

"I love it! It's perfect! Now I can use this everyday for breakfast!" He said, taking the mug and appreciating it. Naruto gave a whoop of joy and dashed in to the apartment, threw himself on the couch and noticed the dolphin. He began to throw it up in the air and catching it when it fell. "Naruto? Have you eaten yet?"

"No. Not yet." Naruto said, catching the dolphin again.

"Join me for ramen?" Iruka offered.

"YAY!"

XXX

Iruka winced and began to hit Naruto's back who was now coughing because he swallowed his broth wrong. Iruka shoved him his own glass of water and watched with a worried face as Naruto swallowed the liquid and sighed.

"I told you a thousand times to slow down when you're eating." Iruka said, patting Naruto's back once more just for good measure.

"But it's so yummy! I don't know how you could just sit there and wait for it to cool down! It's better when it is hot!" Naruto said and scooped some noodles from his bowl and slurped it down. "Yum! Yum! Yummy!"

Iruka felt a smile grace his lips as he watched Naruto. He was nearing the end of his third bowl, so Iruka signaled the old man in charge of the Ichiraku to prepare another bowl. Sure enough, a minute or two later, Naruto waved his chopsticks and asked for another bowl. The boy gave a giddy clap before stirring his noodles and picking out the fish cakes.

It never failed Iruka to watch Naruto look happy and get excited about the simple things in life. A shuffle from behind indicated that someone has entered the cozy ramen joint. Iruka was so absorbed in stirring his noodles while thinking about how Naruto was just so loveable and energetic when he felt two fingers poke him on both his sides, making him jump, loose his balance and fall off the stool, a ticklish yelp escaping his lips.

He braced himself to hit the ground, but never felt it. Instead, he found himself staring in to a pair of honey-hazel eyes.

"I didn't know you were ticklish." Genma said, smiling down at him, while Iruka flushed.

TBC

Waah! Dripping Kawaii-ness! I love Genma!

Genma: Get off man!

Shi-chan: Iie! Daisuki da!

Genma blush: W-Wha?

Iruka: Oi! Oi!

:Shi-chan: I love Iruka too! Share na? Iruka-chan!

Iruka big smile: Okay!

Iruka and Shi-chan glomps Genma.


	12. Part 12 More than Friendship?

Genma is cute! I love Genma! Wooh! Anyway, uh, this chapter is a bit weird by my nice and sweet beta-reader gave me a loud SQUEE when she read it – bottom line, she liked it. Oh! Oh! You must check out her deviantart account! She has made me a nice pic of Iruka in leather (see chapter 8) and she has colored it. I must say that I have been drooling on that picture for the past hour while putting up my author's notes. Go check it out and bow to her!

Faint 12 for you guys! Enjoy!

**FAINT 12**

"YOU!" Naruto yelled at Genma, pointing a finger with a scowl on his face. "How dare you put Iruka-sensei's life in danger like that?"

"Danger?" Genma blinked and stared down at Iruka, who was now being supported completely by his arms, head resting on his shoulder. He helped the chuunin back to his chair and looked at Naruto, who was clearly very pissed off. Genma winced as the tip of Naruto's nin-sandals hit his left shin and he scowled at the boy.

"Next time you do anything to Iruka-sensei I'll kick you over there." He gestured to a particularly sensitive area.

"I'd like to see you try, brat!" Genma hissed.

Before a fight between the pissed off blonde and the annoyed Jounin broke out, Iruka came in between. "More ramen, Naruto?"

"Yes!" Naruto said, ignoring Genma as if he was never there in the first place and plopping back onto his stool, rubbing his hands together as another steaming bowl was placed before him.

Genma slid onto the stool beside Iruka and watched him, who watched Naruto stir his noodles and began to wolf them down. Iruka smiled and then turned his attention to Genma. "Ramen?"

"You don't mind?" Genma asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"One chicken ramen please." Iruka said and the old man nodded and began to prepare another bowl. Iruka smiled at his friend and comrade and flicked a glance at Naruto who was poking something in his bowl. Naruto was amazed how the fishcake seemed to float back up and sink for some reason. Iruka was about to speak when another shuffle sounded from behind him.

"I want four bowls. That was the price. You lost three rounds!"

"Yeah, yeah."

Genma noticed how Iruka tensed. He slapped bills on the table, just the right amount for everything he ordered, including Genma's bowl. "You'll have to excuse me, Shiranui-san. Naruto, come. Let's get you home?"

"Okay!" Naruto patted his stomach. "Uh, can I sleep over, Iruka-sensei?"

Iruka smiled fondly at his former blonde student and ruffled his hair. "Sure." He stood up and so did Naruto. Genma did not say anything to stop Iruka from leaving, as the newcomers stopped and turned to look at the leaving chuunin.

Raido and Kakashi were about to utter a greeting, but Iruka walked right passed them, as if they were not even there in the first place. Naruto gave them a little wave before bouncing out behind Iruka and latching onto his back.

XXX

Genma watched as Iruka ignored the two baffled and ashamed looking jounins. He signaled to the man to wrap up his order instead and waited for it with a fixed calm and emotion-free face. Raido sat on his chair while Kakashi merely pulled out his book, made an order and read as if nothing happened.

Iruka's laughter sounded from outside as Naruto jumped on his back. Genma could feel a smile threatening to tug at his lips as he watched a very happy Iruka give Naruto a piggyback ride. His order was placed before him.

"Genma?" Raido said, looking at him with guilt all over his dark colored eyes.

"What?" Genma asked flatly.

Raido was about to say something when he looked away in shame. "I'm sorry."

Genma said nothing and just left the ramen joint.

XXX

Iruka pushed Naruto gently into the room and the boy immediately jumped up on the bed and dove under the pillows, fresh from his shower and dressed in a pair of gray pyjamas that Iruka kept in case Naruto decided to crash over. Iruka arranged the pillows and pulled the blankets over Naruto, rubbing his forehead.

"I'm free tomorrow! No missions till the day after! I'm going to train!"

Iruka nodded and smiled. "And you'll be a very strong ninja." Iruka said and brushed Naruto's cheek affectionately. "Good night Naruto."

"Good night." Naruto said, snuggling deeper into the covers and hugging the green blanket.

Iruka stepped out of the room and turned the lamp off, closing the door slowly with a light click. He padded for his own room and took out a pair of pyjamas and headed for the bathroom. He showered, changed and brushed his teeth then dropped his weight on his own bed and stared out the window. It was cool evening, with a cloudless sky and full moon.

He was about to fall asleep when he felt a shadow cast over his window. He grabbed the kunai he conveniently kept under his pillow, and with lightning fast reflexes, pushed the window open, grabbed the intruder and pinned him on his bed, kunai pressing against the pale neck. Iruka met no struggle and blinked as he stared down at his captive.

"For a teacher, you're way too fast." Genma said, smiling up at him, the needle he normally chewed on gone. Iruka was stunned and remained in his straddling position, kunai pulled back only slightly. Long seconds ticked away and Genma felt the smile on his lips grow broader. "Does that mean you enjoy seeing me pinned below you, totally helpless and submissive?"

Iruka jumped back, stashed away the kunai and leaned against the far wall of his room, face flushed and arms wrapped protectively around himself. "Shi -Shiranui-san!" He gasped out. "W-What are you doing here?"

"I was going to knock on the door properly. But I saw no lights on and I wanted to make sure if you were already asleep." Genma said, shrugging. He then looked at Iruka and approached him slowly. Iruka stiffened and tried to merge with the wall. "I didn't mean to startle you. Heck, I didn't even expect you to catch me that fast."

"Sorry." Iruka apologized. "I - I -"

Genma traced his face with his hand. "Hush now. Don't worry about it." Iruka could only look at the ground. "Listen, Iruka." Iruka looked up at him. "Don't worry about what people say, okay? I know you feel bad and you're offended by the things that - those idiots seems to be saying around here."

"It's nothing." Iruka said, recalling what happened that day. He stepped away from Genma and sat on the bed. "Don't worry about it. Really, it's nothing. It'll pass."

Genma nodded and placed both his hands on his shoulders. "Just to let you know." Iruka glanced up at him. "I'm right here if you need anything."

Without another word, Genma vanished through the open window, leaving Iruka feeling all warm and tingly like he always did whenever they were together.

XXX

Days flew by in a blur and Iruka pointedly ignored his colleagues. The first few days, they were busy smiling teasingly at him and then they were giggling and pointing, but as the days went by and he continued to ignore them, they began to feel ashamed of themselves and soon stopped all together.

Iruka had bigger fish to fry. He noticed, as days turned to weeks, how Naruto was becoming more distant and less alert and always looking deep in thought. He asked Naruto about it once and got a flushed face and very incoherent answer. Iruka dismissed it as some sort of crush since it was very common in Naruto's age. But since then, as more days passed, he saw very little of the boy and this worried him to no end. But with work on his back all the time and him working double shifts nearly everyday, he got very little time to actually seek the boy out.

He was cooped up in his classroom, grading test papers and yawning every ten seconds or so. Genma was on a mission or so he heard and so he could stay up as long as he liked with no one there to drag him home. Iruka was pleased with this trail of thought, although a small part of him insisted that he liked being dragged home by the Jounin.

Two hours later and it was already one in the morning. Iruka began to clear up his desk and gathered his belongings, quietly exiting the academy building. As he took a detour in the exit, he found a figure walking slowly out of the Hokage's office building, footsteps a bit sluggish and shoulders slumped. Worried, Iruka headed for the figure.

"Are you all right?" He asked and as he got closer, he blinked in surprise. The sound of blood dripping sounded suddenly very loud in his ears. "Shiranui-san!"

Genma looked up from his gaze on the ground, a hand covering his badly bleeding arm, and looked up at Iruka. "Iruka!" He smiled. "How many times have I told you not to stay up so long?"

Iruka nearly dropped the lesson plan book he was holding. He quickly helped Genma, who was on the verge of passing out. "Why didn't you go to the hospital?" Iruka chided him.

"Because it's just a little cut, nothing serious. Nothing that I can't take care of on my own." Genma answered, his ego in the way.

Iruka took him over to his place and disposed of the bloody Jounin turtleneck shirt and flak jacket. He took out his antiseptics, healing balms and bandages and proceeded to clean the wound on Genma's arm. He would wince as he watched Genma's fingers tighten against the couch's fabric to kill the urge to either hiss, cry out or curse in pain. Iruka apologized every time he felt Genma shift his arm away from the antiseptics, a guilty look pasted on his face. Once he cleaned the wound, he wrapped it gently with clean and crisp bandages, the bleeding stopped with a little bit of chakra and his sharp skills with first-aid. Genma was right about the wound not being serious. It wasn't very deep so no nerves or veins got damaged, but it was deep enough to lose a lot of blood. Genma was trying to stay awake as his head drooped down dangerously low and was on the verge of fainting.

Iruka got him some clean clothes and helped him change into them. He then took him to his own room in which he had recently changed the sheets and tucked Genma under the covers. Genma was out like a light in seconds and Iruka merely smiled down at his tired yet beautiful features and left the room, closing the door behind him lightly.

TBC


	13. Part 13 Hurting

Grrrrrr! Guys, I'm really sorry for this delay! refused to let me log in but by sheer luck, I managed to log-in today! The heavens are smiling! Not only did I get to buy a whole bag of goodies from Aji Ichiban (a Japanese candy store), but hey! I can finally take down the chapters that are lemon and repost em' else where! No more lemons ere! Phew! Don't want my account shut down! Weeeee!

A big thank you to b4k4-girl for beta-reading this for me! Once again, I'm really sorry!

Enjoy!

**FAINT 13**

Genma sank his head deeper into the pillows, enjoying the softness and smoothness of the fabric and its scent of detergent soap and citrus. He found himself very comfortable until white-hot pain shot up through out his arm and startled him awake, a painful cry tearing its way past his lips before he could even stop it.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" He cursed, grasping his wounded and bandaged arm and winced, biting his lower lip to stop the pain, but to no avail. He heard the door being pushed wide open and a figure kneel beside him, only when he looked up, he found it to be a very different and almost unfamiliar figure.

"Shiranui-san! Shiranui-san!" His vision blurred for a bit and he was in the verge of passing out. "Genma!"

He held onto consciousness out of pure stubborn will and lifted his eyelids to stare into the dark brown depths of Iruka's worried eyes. For a moment, he just took pleasure at the present time in seeing the academy teacher dressed in nothing but an old white sleeveless shirt and loose cotton pants, hair down and about his face, and lips tinged a bit red. He even smiled at the sight.

"H-Hey Iruka." He groaned when he moved, grasping his arm. "Oh god!" He hissed, wincing and biting his lower lip so hard he drew blood.

Iruka held his head and gently laid him back on the pillow. "Shiranui-san! Stop moving or you'll hurt your arm even more!" He began to gently unwrap the bandages and paled in seconds flat at the state of his comrade's arm. "I should have taken you to the hospital!" Iruka quickly placed a hand on Genma's head, then his cheeks then his neck. "You're burning up! The wound must be infected! Shiranui-san! Please! Stay with me! Tell me! What kind of weapon where you stabbed with?"

"A b-blunt k-k-kuna-a-i." Genma answered and groaned in pain, hissing when he suddenly shifted and unwanted pressure came to his wounded muscles.

"Stop moving!" Iruka said, and quickly stood up, pulling his shirt off and grabbing the turtleneck and pants and quickly dressing. "Stay awake! Don't fall asleep just yet!"

Genma suddenly felt fear grip his heart. The mission the other night had gone a bit dirty and nasty and a fight broke out between two opposing Jounin parties. He was very lucky that he just got stabbed on the shoulder. One of his team members was barely alive when he was taken to the hospital the other night. He was stabbed by a rather blunt kunai and Genma swore that the blunt edge broke when he tried to lessen the impact by doing a simple taijutsu move with his hands. Maybe when he pulled the blade out, some remnants of the blunt kunai remained in his skin, like a small piece of scrap metal or something. Either way, he was starting to feel distant.

"Iruka." He whispered, turning his head away as Iruka slipped on his sandals. "I feel faint."

Iruka quickly rushed beside him and pulled the covers that were suddenly drenched in cold sweat off him. "Hush now! I'm taking you to the hospital."

"It's c-c-cold." Genma said, wincing and turning his head away, skin ghastly pale and eyes glazing. "I-Iruka. C-Cold."

Iruka pulled out the shawl Genma once gave him and wrapped it around Genma. "Shh! Don't worry. You'll be fine. You just need a doctor."

"I'm s-s-sorry." Genma whispered, head spinning with images of Iruka. "I-I couldn't t-t-tell you."

Iruka hoisted Genma on his shoulders and held him close and tight. "Whatever it is you want to tell me, it will have to wait till you're better. Focus on getting better, Genma! Just hang on!"

Genma watched as black spots appeared in his vision, that grew bigger and bigger until his world went black while Iruka performed seals with his hands and teleported them to the hospital. But Genma had a smile on his face, as he was laid on an emergency stretcher and wheeled in to the emergency room, oxygen mask strapped on to his face and anesthesia injected on to him. But he was stilly happy.

_He said my name._

XXX

Iruka paced the waiting room silently. Genma came out of the emergency room a good hour later, but did not look like the Genma he knew. Worry gripped Iruka's heart as he caught a glimpse of a deathly colored Genma, with his whole arm in thick bandages, and an oxygen mask on his face, along with the hanging IV fluid and blood pack. Tsunade was now inside, doing her healing jutsu and she had been inside for the past forty minutes. Usually it took her but a few minutes to work her magic but this was taking too long.

He paced the room again and then the door opened and Tsunade came out. Iruka looked up expectantly, but watched with confusion as the nurse hang a sign on the door that read Do Not Disturb and left Tsunade after giving her a proper good bye.

"How is he? Is he all right?" Iruka asked, worried like a sick puppy.

"He could have lost his arm!" Tsunade snapped. She was NOT in a good mood. "Why didn't you bring him to the hospital?"

"He didn't want too! He said it was just a scratch." Iruka said, voice trembling.

"And did your crush blind you from logical decisions?" Tsunade asked, glaring. "A moment longer and his arm would have malfunctioned completely! A nerve ending and important blood vessels were damaged. It's a good thing that you brought him here immediately."

Iruka looked at the floor in shame. "I'm sorry." Tsunade merely gave out a curse, obviously not pleased with the idea of having one of her best people not able to function properly. "Can I see him?"

"No, you cannot. He doesn't want to see anyone just yet because of his condition. You're a man. It's an ego thing. You should understand."

The truth was, Iruka didn't. He would have thought that Genma would at least want to see him. After all, weren't they friends? Iruka felt his insides hurt and mesh so badly that he actually tensed up and flushed red. He thought Genma would honor him and quench his worry by just even having a little glimpse of his breathing form.

"I - I understand." He lied.

Tsunade studied Iruka for a moment. "Iruka, it's best if you just wait for him to be discharged. He specifically demanded that no one other than the nurses and doctors enter his room. You are no exception."

This hurt Iruka even more.

"If it is his wish, then I understand." Iruka said.

"Good." Tsunade said and patted him on the back. "He's fine. Don't worry. He just needs rest."

Iruka nodded and watched as Tsunade left the hallway. A hand unconsciously came up to his chest, which seemed to be heavy with hurt and a sense of betrayal by Genma's actions.

XXX

Days passed and Iruka didn't hear from Genma. There were little talks in the staff room and hallways that he hadn't been discharged from the hospital yet, but Iruka was not comforted by this. He still felt hurt that Genma refused to see him. He knew it was selfish of him to feel in such a way. After all, what was he to Genma? So there was a good relation between them in terms of camaraderie and co-working. But so what? Wasn't that enough reason?

Iruka picked out scrolls from the shelf of the staff library, reading the list from his hand. Naruto had left him a note telling him that he wanted some jutsu scrolls to learn off from, specifically water based and earth based ones. At least Naruto was there to keep his mind busy somewhat. But even then, he barely saw the boy and he knew, since the day Naruto graduated, that he would have to deal with the fact of seeing less of him. He was a genin after all and a growing shinobi.

"But still." Iruka whispered.

Finding the scrolls Naruto requested, he packed up, arranged his desk and exited the Academy building. He took a detour towards Naruto's small apartment to drop off the scrolls and found Naruto walking down the street from the opposite side heading to his apartment as well.

"Naruto!" He called out and he could have sworn that Naruto looked sad and hurt but smiled widely at the sight of him.

"Iruka-sensei!" Naruto called out, running up to him, beaming from ear to ear.

"I haven't seen you in ages! How have you been? Naruto! You've lost weight! Are you eating properly?" Iruka asked, worry in his voice.

"I have, of course." Naruto lied, and Iruka frowned. "Well, I've skipped a few meals."

Iruka decided not to press on the matter. "Either way, have you eaten dinner?" Naruto shook his head, a hopeful gleam in his eye. "Come. I'll treat you to ramen."

"Yes!" Naruto pumped a fist in the air. "You're the best, Iruka-sensei!" Naruto threw his arms around Iruka's waist and hugged him tight.

XXX

Six bowls and two cups of tea later, Naruto gave a burp and beamed up at Iruka. "Thank you, Iruka-sensei!"

"Any time. Though, I really wish you wouldn't skip your meals." Iruka chided, placing folded bills on the counter.

"I really try not too. But training is so tiring, that I fall asleep once I get home." Naruto said, wiping his fingers with the table napkin.

Iruka felt hurt at what Naruto said, since he knew that training kept one's mind off certain things. He didn't doubt that Naruto hated going home to an empty house, which is why he made it a point to make sure that it happened very little. It was just that the past few days - even weeks - had been rather hectic and tight-scheduled.

"Come. I'll treat you to something sweet." Iruka said.

"Oh! Oh! Can we try the snow cones? Chouji said they were really nice!" Naruto said excitedly.

"Of course! Lead the way."

A few minutes later, Naruto and Iruka sat on a park bench, overlooking a small pond and eating snow cones. Naruto looked happy eating his frozen dessert, and when he finished his, he turned to look at Iruka funnily. Iruka blinked at his frozen dessert, since Naruto ate his really fast, and laughed, handing it to Naruto, who all but jumped in the air with glee.

"Ne, Iruka-sensei?" Naruto asked, suddenly looking serious, the frozen dessert half finished in his hand.

"Hmm?"

"You were alone too, weren't you?" Iruka frowned at the question. "D-Did you ever think of leaving the village?"

Iruka swallowed. It was a tricky question. "Well, once or twice, I did think about it. But my hopes and dreams and family heirlooms reminded me that there was more to Konoha than just being an orphan."

Naruto remained silent. "If you didn't have a family, would you have left?"

Iruka swallowed the lump in his throat once more, which was bigger than the last one. "That wouldn't really be necessary, don't you think?" Naruto looked up at him in puzzlement. "I have you." Iruka watched as Naruto stared up at him, lips trembling as he looked away to hide his teary eyes. "You have your dreams Naruto. Don't ever forget that." Iruka placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "I know we're not related by blood or anything, but I still want you to know that I'm here for you, no matter what. I don't think less of you because of what you have inside you, Naruto. You're still my little kid to me."

"Ah." Naruto whispered, hands shaking. "Sometimes, it's hard."

"It always is." Iruka said, wrapping his arms around Naruto as the boy began to cry, not for the first time in his arms. "It always is. But that is why you have your precious ones, ne?" Naruto sobbed harder. "Remember your dreams and those close to you, and you'll be fine. Everything is eventual. That was what the third always told me." Iruka took the container with the melting shaved ice and placed it on the space beside him, since it was already threatening to fall on the ground. "Everything is eventual. Sometimes it just takes time."

Naruto nodded and just held on tighter.

TBC

I really suck at tenses. Ah, well no one's perfect. Anyway, this chapter was cute to my standards. I just love a weepy-weepy Naruto.

Toodles.


	14. Part 14 To hold you

Okay, this scene was written long time ago when Britney's video Everytime got released. No, I do like Britney. And No, I hate that song! I was surfing through channels and stopped at MTV when I saw a scene and said .. "EUREKA!"

So here we have it!

Thank you to b4k4-girl for beta-reading this for me! Mwah!

Btw, I've been reading this cute KakaIru story called Side Effects by momo4. I think you guys should check it out! It's really neat!

Enjoy!

**FAINT 14**

Days had passed since Iruka held Naruto in his arms as the little boy cried until he fell asleep. Iruka had stayed in his home until six AM before leaving a lovely breakfast waiting for Naruto to be consumed and going to academy and doing his daily routine. Genma was discharged from the hospital a few days back, but he had overheard Raiko telling Kakashi and Gai that Genma was in a foul mood and did not welcome visitors. He was too busy taking rest in his little humble home to deal with anyone.

The days passed by Iruka in a haze, with him moving from the classroom to the mission room and back to the classroom to mark papers and so forth. He was beginning to feel faint and sickly again and if it wasn't for Kurenai telling him to get some rest, he would have fallen ill again.

It was on a tiring Tuesday afternoon that the Hokage called for Iruka. At first, Iruka was confused, but then he dismissed the call for something mission-related. As he exited the empty classroom, he passed by the staff room and found Genma leaning against the window frame, chatting with Raido. He stared wide-eyed at the sight of Genma, feeling glad that he was okay and up and about, but hurt that he didn't say anything to him or even notified him of his presence. Iruka gave a small sad smile towards Genma, who was now laughing at something Raido said. Iruka gave one last glance towards Genma before continuing down the hall towards the Hokage's office.

XXX

When Iruka entered the Hokage's office, he found the air tight, suffocating and eerie. There was a tinge of sadness in the office space, and Tsunade herself looked solemn, but she offered him a small smile, before her expression fell back to its grim one.

"You called for me, Hokage-sama?" Iruka asked, dreading what the Hokage has to say.

"Yes, I did." Tsunade gestured for the chair. "Have a seat Iruka. I have some - some sad news." Iruka frowned and felt his limbs suddenly tremble. He made his way to the chair opposite the Hokage's desk and sat himself, suddenly feeling tense and frigid. "I do not know how to break this to you, so I will be direct." Iruka frowned even more. "N-Naruto has left Konoha." Iruka bolted to his feet, eyes wide, and stepped back.

"What?" He choked out.

"He is not a missing-nin or anything, in fact he asked my permission to leave and I gave it to him." Iruka was now shaking terribly. "I know this is hard for you, and for me as well. But he will be back. He promised. You and I both know that Naruto never backs down on his word. He's just not sure when." Iruka stared at the floor, sadness, guilt, horror, and fear all built up in him and meshed up into one horrible blank and faint feeling that he didn't know what it was. His chest felt tight and breathing seemed to be difficult. "He - He told me to give this to you." Iruka looked up at Tsunade's outstretched hand and stared at the object in it. "He told me to tell you to keep it and that he'd be back for it. It's something precious to him." Tsunade stood up and circled her table, standing in front of Iruka and clasping his numb fingers around the forehead protector. "Go home, Iruka. You don't have to come to work. Rest. Don't force yourself on things."

Iruka managed to nod and maintain his finger's grasp on the forehead protector. "Yes, Hokage-sama. T-Thank you."

Without another word, he left the office, Tsunade staring at him with sad eyes as he vanished behind the swinging doors.

XXX

Iruka blindly made his way back to the academy and robotically arranged his desk. He collected his workload and packed it in a bag that he kept in the classroom's locker. That done, he turned the lights of the classroom off and headed for the staff room to take home some things he brought with him that morning. He entered the staff room, not really seeing anything in front of him. There was a mantra going on in his head, reciting the things he needed to take home with him.

Inside the staff room, Kakashi, Gai, Raido and Genma were talking up until the point when Iruka came in. Almost instantly, Raido, Kakashi and Gai threw Genma big grins as the elder man blushed.

"I-Iruka! I came by your classroom earlier. I heard the Hokage summoned you. How have you been?" Genma spoke, glad to see Iruka again.

But Iruka did not respond. All of them noticed the glazed and dead look in his eyes as he mechanically set the bag containing his folders on his desk and randomly collected papers and scrolls, stuffing them into the bag.

"Iruka-sensei?" Raido asked, but Iruka continued walking about collecting his belongings, lips slightly parted and cheeks flushed. The four exchanged frowns as Iruka continued to gather his things.

Iruka could hear a distant rumble of voices but he did not know or see who they belonged too. He placed the last remaining stack of papers in his bag before reaching for his mug. He stopped and stared at the mug for a while. It was the very mug Naruto gave him, the one with dolphins jumping. His last mug had broken the other day so he had to bring in another spare. When he clasped his fingers around the mug's handle, it slipped and fell on the ground. It didn't break, but a part of the mug's rim cracked and a few chips fell off. Iruka's eyes glazed even more as he knelt and pick up the remaining of the mug and its broken chips and held it close to his chest. He picked up his bag and exited the room, heading for home. As he left the room, the party of four who watched him with confused and worried expressions exchanged an even more worried glance.

Iruka reached his apartment and kicked the door close. He placed his bag on the couch and set the mug on the kitchen counter, kicking his sandals off in the process. He made his way to the bathroom and plugged the tub, turned the tap on and began to fill the tub with water. He tossed in some bath liquids before heading for his room and setting Naruto's forehead protector on his dresser, next to his, all the while feeling numb. He pulled out a terry cloth robe and headed for the bathroom. Placing the robe on top of the closed lid of the toilet seat, he pulled his clothes off, tossing them outside the bathroom door and kicking it shut. He stepped into the bath and sank himself into the water, leaning his head back, staring blankly at the bathroom ceiling.

His lips parted as he took in slow breaths. He refused to believe that Naruto left. But the forehead protector lying on his dresser next to his was proof enough. And then the guilt came washing over him. Maybe it was because he wasn't there for him all the time. Maybe because he was always busy with work. Maybe because he didn't play his role as Naruto's 'father' or 'older brother' well enough. Maybe because he was so busy worrying about his own problems that he failed Naruto in being there for him.

Iruka sat up from his lying position and stared at his reflection in the rippling water, bits of bubbles here and there, but he could still see his wavering image. His throat began to tighten as he felt himself worthless and pathetic and how he felt that he was unworthy to be called Naruto's guardian (even though there weren't any legal works).

Iruka brought a hand to his mouth as his body began to shake and tremble with sobs that soon turned into loud wails of sadness as he cried and cried till his eyes hurt and throat felt raw.

XXX

Genma was surprised that Iruka had treated him so coldly. Perhaps it was his fault for not seeing him immediately. He heard from Tsunade when he returned to his duties that Iruka was very worried about him. Yet, after seeing him that day, he couldn't help but feel worry creep in him.

He stared at the window of his bedroom, hours later since witnessing Iruka. He couldn't help but feel worried for the chuunin. Finally, he got up from his bed and dressed, jogging towards Iruka's house that he so familiar with now.

He was surprised to find the door unlocked, and couldn't help but feel worried. It was like a classic tragedy setting, or so his mind whispered. Genma hated those cheesy tragedy settings in movies and couldn't help but smirk that the same thing was happening to him now. He was not a believer of such things, but he told himself that Iruka must have forgotten to lock the door or must have gone out to throw the garbage out.

Yet, as he stepped in and closed the door behind him, something heavy settled on his chest. He frowned and looked around, finding Iruka's bag on the couch. As he continued walking deeper into Iruka's home, he found the broken mug on the kitchen counter and his sandals tossed carelessly on the floor.

"This is so not him." Genma mumbled and headed for the hallway that lead to the bedrooms and bathroom.

Just as he was about step into the dark bedroom, he noticed that the bathroom light was on. Frowning he reached out for the doorknob, heart in his throat, and twisted it open. For some strange reason, he remembered all the cheesy movies he saw when he was a teenager and for a moment, a thought of finding blood on the bathroom tiles flashed in his mind. Steeling himself, he pushed the door wide open and his eyes widened.

"Iruka! Oh god! Iruka!" He knelt by the bathtub and quickly scooped Iruka's drooping head and leaned it against his arm, staring down at the man. Iruka was staring up at him blankly and he was barely breathing. Genma felt a smile tug his lips but it quickly faded as he watched tears escape the hazy eyes. "Iruka! Oi! Iruka!" Iruka's eyes slowly turned to meet his, and Genma smiled in relief. "Thank god! I thought you were a goner!"

Iruka continued staring at him blankly, and this caused Genma to lose the moment of relief he felt. "S-Shiranui-sa-an." Iruka said croakily, voice raw and eyes bloodshot.

"Shit! What are you trying to do to yourself, damnit? It's not funny!" Genma said, shaking Iruka. "Oi! Iruka!" His voice was now loud and panicked. "Come on! Let's get you out of here." Genma wrapped his arms around Iruka's torso and easily hauled him out the bathtub. Grabbing the robe from the closed toilet seat lid, he tossed it around Iruka's shaking form and carried him off to the bedroom. He sat him on the bed, and knelt in front of him, hands on his shoulder. "Iruka! Iruka!" He said again and again and still Iruka stared at him with the blank expression. "Damnit! Snap out of it!" Genma stood up and slapped Iruka across the face as hard as he could, making the younger chuunin fall back on the bed on his arms. Iruka remained like that and when Genma managed to contain his temper, he was left with desperation. "Iruka. Please, Iruka!" He manhandled Iruka to a sitting position, hurt and afraid at the sight of his blank eyes. "Iruka. Please. Iruka! Look at me! Speak to me!" Genma begged, but Iruka continued to stare blankly, as if looking right through him and at something else.

Genma gently began to dry his skin with the terry cloth robe. Once dried, he pulled out a yukata from Iruka's closet and wrapped Iruka in it. He then knelt in front of Iruka once more, staring into unseeing eyes.

"Shiranui-san." Iruka whispered and tilted his head to look at him. For a moment, Genma felt relief. But Iruka's next words quickly replaced this feeling with worry. "Am I a bad person?"

"No! No, of course not! Who told you that?" Genma demanded. He swore if he found out, that person would have to have his entire esophagus operated on to get it functioning again.

"D-Do you think Naruto hates me?"

"No! He loves you! Everybody loves you, Iruka!" Genma said, reached up and enveloped Iruka in a hug, burying his face in his damp hair. "I do too."

Silence swallowed the both of them. Slowly, Genma lowered the both of them to the bed, spooning himself behind Iruka, his hold on him tight and secure.

TBC

Awwwwwwwwwwww! Bleh! Not gonna last though! NI NI NI NI NI!


	15. Part 15 Rejecting?

Beta-read version! Up and running! Yay for V-chan!

Ja!

**FAINT 15**

****

****

****

Genma shifted in his sleep and mechanically tightened his hold on the person in his arms, only to feel a soft pillow instead. His eyes snapped open and he sat up, looking around the now empty room. A blue blanket pooled around his waist as he finally realized that it was the thing that kept him warm. His head was also on a pillow and his forehead protector was lying beside him.

"Iruka?" He called out and noticed the few stray rays of sunshine penetrating through a gap in the two drawn curtains. He sensed no chakra in the house, so he got up and pulled the curtains apart. He winced as bright light hit him in the face and he noticed the sun was really high in the sky. "Shit! What time is it?" He hissed and looked around the bedroom for a clock and found one reading one PM.

Genma let out a string of curses that were sure to make Iruka cringe as he went about checking every room in the house only to find it empty. He barged out of the small apartment and headed for the academy. Classes went out at two, so Iruka would still be teaching. He ignored the calls of his colleagues and best friend and stormed towards the general direction of Iruka's class. He didn't bother to knock and found himself staring wide eyed at Asuma, who was scribbling something on the board while the students copied it in their study scrolls.

"Where's Iruka?" Genma hissed, glaring at Asuma.

Asuma blinked a few times before shrugging. "He resigned his position as a teacher this morning. Haven't seen him since then."

Genma cursed out lout, making the young ones inside gasp in horror as he slammed the door shut. He made his way to the Hokage's office, blinded by worry for the young chuunin. Just last night he was in such a horrible state and now he was out and gallavanting around. Genma had to keep his attitude in check. He knocked on the door three times and waited for Tsunade's reply before barging in.

"Genma. You don't look very happy." Tsunade said, a smirk on her face.

"Where's Iruka?" Genma hissed, but Tsunade said nothing and went about stirring some tea in the cup in front of her. Genma gritted his teeth and slammed his fists on the table. "Damnit! Where is he?" Genma started a little bit when Tsunade's palm came into contact with his cheek. Tsunade really had a bad temper and wouldn't hesitate to vent her frustrations on anyone. The joys of being Hokage. Or maybe it was just Genma.

"Watch your mouth or else!" Tsunade snapped.

Genma rubbed his painful nose and cheeks which were now slightly red from the slap-punch that Tsunade gave him. "Sorry." He mumbled, staring at his toes. "I'm just worried."

"He's a grown man, Genma. He can take care of himself." Tsunade pointed out.

"But last night!" Genma reasoned.

"He's on a mission, Genma. He quit being a teacher and he's now an active chuunin." Tsunade said. "He won't be around all the time now. He'll be fine. Iruka is not a weak person. I thought you knew that."

Genma wanted to counter the Hokage's words with what he witnessed the previous night, but found it futile. He merely nodded, apologized and left the office.

Since that day, he _barely_ saw Iruka anymore.

"It's as if I don't know him." He mumbled, staring at the darkening sky.

XXX

Genma was walking home after a mission. It'd been roughly nine months since he last saw Iruka. Iruka, he heard, was busy hogging up all missions that involved leaving the Fire Country. He was so obsessed with missions that even some of the jounins and chuunins were given a long holiday due to little missions coming in. Genma only saw him a few times from a far-off distance and was never able to pursue him because he had his own duties to take care of.

It had been a long tiring night and he was finally home after a weeklong mission that involved undercover work and information gathering. He was hungry, sleepy and he did _not_ want to do paperwork the next day. He had mountains of it to do and at times like these he wished he had his own genin team. He found out that Naruto left the same day he found out that Iruka resigned his position as a teacher. Kakashi had been slightly depressed and worried at the same time and he seemed to have been in a bad mood.

"That was a long time ago." Genma whispered, approaching a corner that would lead him to his block. "Sometimes I feel very old." He mumbled and took a turn only to collide with something rather painfully. He had to grab the edge of wooden fence that lined the empty lot that he was walking by. "Hey! Watch it, you punk!" He snapped.

"Sorry. I'm in a hurry."

Genma's eyes widened. "Iruka!" He stared at the figure standing up from the rather painful collision and dusting off his clothes. "W- What - Iruka!"

Iruka looked up and his eyes widened a bit. But Genma felt all speech leave the tip of his tongue when he caught sight of Iruka's appearance. Iruka looked thinner, tired, pale and very worn out. His eyes were just screaming 'stress' and his shoulders were slightly hunched from overwork. Even his duster-style ponytail looked limp.

"Shiranui-san." Iruka managed to say, before his lips curved up in to a polite smile. "Forgive me. I didn't see you. It's my fault. I wasn't looking to where I was going. I should have sensed -"

"Where have you been?" Genma asked desperately. "Look at yourself! You're so stressed out!"

"Well, I've been doing missions lately. Haven't done them in a long time."

"That's not the point!" Genma snapped. "D-Do you know how long I've tried tailing you and trying to get in touch with you? I was worried about you! That night - that night when you were in the bathtub and - damnit! Why didn't you come and see me?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Iruka said stubbornly, narrowing his eyes. "Please, Shiranui-san, I have a mission to accomplish."

"Drop it."

"What?"

"I said drop the mission. There are lots of other shinobis that are already complaining about having _nothing_ to do because _Iruka-sensei_ has been hogging _all_ the missions." Genma said. "So drop it."

"Give me _one_ _good reason_ on _why_ I should _listen_ to _you_." Iruka said seriously, shifting his weight to his other leg.

"Look at you!" Genma said exasperatedly. "Have you looked in a mirror lately? When was the last time you slept properly? When was the last time you had a decent meal? When, Iruka? Nine months ago?"

"That's not a good reason." Iruka said and side-stepped away from Genma to continue on his way.

"He's won't come back because you ask him to." Genma called out and Iruka stopped in his tracks, fists clenching. "He left on his own! He went to find his own way in life! He made his own decision! You can't change it even if you do find him."

"I can at least try!" Iruka said, voice slightly trembling. "No one else would go look for him! Well, I am!"

"It's not that!" Genma said desperately, turning around facing Iruka's back. "It's not that! He left on his own, Iruka!"

"Because I wasn't there for him enough!" Iruka turned and snapped, eyes burning with anger, despair and sadness. "I was so busy with my own problems that I ignored him! Don't you understand? His team _hates_ his guts! I wasn't there when he needed me the most! Don't you understand?"

"No, you don't understand!" Genma snapped back. "It was bound to happen sooner or later! The Hokage _knew_ that! Why did you think she allowed him to leave? So that he could take a jolly picnic outside the country? She _knew_! Kakashi _knew!_"

"And none of them even bothered to stop him!" Iruka screamed.

"Because they couldn't even if they tried! He's a stubborn brat! He wouldn't listen, one way or the other! He didn't even listen to you!"

"Because I wasn't there!" Iruka screamed out.

"You were there!" Genma snapped back. "You were there, Iruka! He loves you! Don't you get it? He needed to find things out on his own! You can't be there for him twenty-four-seven! He's growing up! When will you understand that?"

"He's _alone_! He is _alone_!" Iruka snapped back.

"So are you." Genma said in a calmer tone. Iruka stopped talking and stared at him wide eyed. "I told you before that he loves you. He wouldn't have left that forehead protector in your care if he didn't. Anybody who sees him with you could tell that he loves you as his guardian. It practically flashing in their faces." Iruka didn't reply. "I told you that he loves you, remember? On that night." Genma approached him and was about to touch him but Iruka stepped back. Genma caught him in his arms and hugged him. "I also told you that I do too. Remember?"

"I have a mission to do." Iruka said quietly. "Let me go, Shiranui-san."

Cold.

Genma felt hurt twist in his chest. "Do you even care?"

"I have work to do." Iruka said in a low voice, cracking. "Please let me go."

Genma turned him around so that Iruka was facing him, and stared deeply into Iruka's eyes. He looked so tired and all of a sudden he looked so old. Genma once knew Iruka as the clumsy chuunin who apologized for even the smallest thing like if he suddenly dropped your pen or pencil on the ground. He would smile politely, laugh at a corny joke just so that you wouldn't feel offended and guided youngsters well as if they were his own children. But now, the Iruka in front of him was just a ghost of the one he once he knew. Or _thought_ he knew.

He let got of Iruka and took a step back. "I once knew a chuunin named Umino Iruka. He was fun, sweet, kind and obnoxiously polite." He gave him a sad smile. "Now I'm looking at him and I feel -" Genma turned around, feeling very hurt. He'd just confessed and the person he confessed to didn't even care. The saying was true then. Rejection is painful. "I feel like I don't even know him." With that said, he walked home, and only then did he realized that his cheeks were wet. "So it rained." He whispered to his home.

But there were no raindrops falling from the sky.

TBC

I love this chapter! This is SO my favorite!

Poor Genma!


	16. Part 16 Dreaming

Beta-read version up! Thank you to V-chan for doing this! Yay!

**FAINT 16**

Iruka returned home a week later after a long mission in the Lightning Country. He felt tired, worn out and he just wanted to curl up in his bed and go to sleep for a day or two. He was climbing up the steps to his apartment, dragging his feet from sheer fatigue, when he caught sight of a figure leaning against the doorframe of his apartment entrance.

"Hey, Iruka."

"Raido?" Iruka blinked, then sighed. "If it's the report, my other teammate has it. You can get it off her."

"I didn't wait here for that." Raido said, standing upright and shoving his hands in to his pockets. "Listen, I know this ain't any of my business, but I think you should take it easy with your mission thing. Rest up for a couple of days and if you want, you can go back to hogging up everything after that. Just gets some rest. You look like someone who just woke up from the grave."

Iruka was too tired to think of a reply and merely waved his hand. "All right, all right."

Raido slammed his fist on his door. "I'm serious."

"That's not the reason you're here." Iruka said, tiredly looking at him. "I don't mean to be rude, but I'm tired, I'm hungry and I really want to take bath."

"He's worried about you." Raido said. Iruka dug out his keys and began to unlock his door. "Do you even care?" Iruka did not reply. "Damnit, answer me!" He hissed.

"What do you want me to say Raido?" Iruka asked, turning to him. "I can't even think of what to feel right now! What's it to you, anyway?"

"What kind of a friend would I be if I didn't give a damn about what happened to him?"

"I'm tired Raido, this can wait till morning." Iruka said, unlocking his door.

"No, it can't! You know what? This is useless! You want to be alone, fine! You want to remain on your own for the rest of your life, fine! But I'm not letting Genma get hurt just because of you! I thought you'd understand! You always had an open mind! But no! Coming here was one HELL of a mistake! I was wrong! You're not Iruka anymore! You're someone else! I thought you two would be good together! I thought that he deserved you because he's a nice person and so are you. I guess I'm just blind and stupid after all. I'm sorry about disturbing you, Iruka. Please, go ahead. I'll be leaving now."

Without another word, Raido vanished down the hallway, leaving Iruka completely stumped. Iruka headed into his house and locked the door, took off his clothes, showered and jumped into bed. His fatigue got the better of him and soon he was asleep, with Raido's words ringing in his ears.

XXX

_Iruka sat on the bed eagerly, looking worried, excited and afraid at the same time. His clothes were all over the floor and the person in front of him was currently pulling the last article of clothing off his body. The turtleneck was tossed aside and he came close to Iruka. Iruka's eyes widened at a particular area that was hard and alert._

_"Oh, my!" He choked out._

_"So what do you think?" He asked._

_"It's - uh - well - it's really big!" Iruka said out in a gasp._

_"Yeah, it runs in the family, I think." The man said, laughing a bit. _

_"Umm - okay. But - But how is going to fit and everything?" Iruka said, eyes still staring at the alert organ._

_"You stretch, love."_

_Iruka blushed. "I - I knew that!" _

_"Awww! You're blushing." The man lay beside him and pulled him to his chest. "Want to play with it for a while?"_

_"Play?" Iruka asked, looking at the alert organ. His fingers gently brushed against the taut skin, which earned him a groan from the man under him. "My, My, Genma. You like that?" _

_"Tease."_

_"Hmmm." Iruka looked at the alert organ again, fingers tracing the tip. "I shall call you Sharpie." _

_"Sharpie, huh?" Genma laughed. "Come here!" _

_Iruka was pinned on the bed and was ravaged all over by a very passionate jounin. Iruka could hear a loud banging noise from the door but he was too caught up in his pleasure to pay it any attention._

_"Let me feel Sharpie in me!"_

_Genma gave a hearty laugh that was drowned out by the loud knocking. _

"Okay! Damnit, I'm up already!" Iruka sat up and tossed the pillow to one side. He blinked and looked around his empty room. The loud knocking sounded again from his front door. Cursing, he stood up and noticed the sheets were slightly wet and sticky. Only then did he notice the white stain on his thighs and he blushed from embarrassment. "Coming!" He called out to the door. He grabbed a robe and pulled it over his bare form and padded for the front door. "Yes?" He looked down to find a genin holding out a scroll to him. It was his teammate's younger sister.

"She said that you should go give it in for report filing. She's sick and confined to the bed. She also apologizes for any trouble that she might be causing you. But she's really sick." The young girl said.

"Oh." Iruka said, staring at the scroll. "Okay. Tell your sister it's all right. Extend my wishes for her to get well soon okay?"

"Sure. Bye!" The girl waved and headed down the hallway for the stairwell.

Iruka shut the door and padded to the kitchen, sitting on the stool. It was eleven in the morning, and he was still tired. He decided to rest himself that day and continue taking missions the following day. He really was very hungry and wanted to eat. Maybe some ramen and snow cones.

He remembered Naruto.

XXX

Iruka walked down the halls towards the mission room. He found Tsunade inside along with some chuunins who greeted him politely. He gave them his brightest and most polite smile as he walked over to the Hokage and handed her the scroll.

"My! My! You look better! Did you get laid?" Tsunade asked, taking the scroll from him.

Iruka blushed as eyes turned to look at him. "W-What?"

"Sorry, sorry. Just an assumption. It's just that you've been so stressed out that I just thought, hey, he's looking better. Maybe he got laid!" Tsunade shrugged, stamping a document and tossing the scroll inside a box to read later on. Iruka was about to point out the fact that he had just returned from a long mission the other night and that getting laid was probably the last thing on his mind, but decided against it. "Anyway. You look better. Horrible, but better. Take the day off. Go eat. Sleep. Sit. Anything that does NOT involve running around. Hear me?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

"Get moving then." Tsunade waved her hand and motioned for him to leave the mission room.

Iruka politely bowed and headed for the exit. As he was walking down the quiet hallway, he saw familiar faces approach him. It was Raido and Genma, chatting. Iruka stopped in his tracks and looked up, a blush creeping up his cheeks.

Raido saw him and, as if he said nothing the other night, greeted him like always did. "Hello, Iruka! How are you?"

Iruka stammered on his words, his tongue suddenly going limp in his mouth. He was actually looking at Genma, and not Raido. He also remembered the dream he had, and how he had called Genma's _thing_ Sharpie. "Uh - err - uh - h-h-hello, Shiranui-s-san. I'm fine t-t-thank you. A-And you?" Iruka's eyes suddenly strayed to Genma's _thing_ and he blushed redder, if possible. His ears were so hot that he swore they were going to melt. Raido was about to roll on the floor with hilarity but contained himself by leaning on the wall. "W-W-Well, I-I-I better get g-g-going. H-H-Have a nice day, Shiranui-san." He bowed politely, and when his eyes came within the vision arc of Genma's _thing_ a squeak left his mouth and he bolted down the hallway, red as ever, and he didn't stop running until he reached the Ichiraku to have a decent meal.

XXX

Genma stared at Raido who was already rolling in the hallway floors with hilarity. The man had burst out laughing as soon as Iruka took off, blushing like a schoolgirl. Genma was _very_ confused at Iruka's behavior. It was almost as if he was back to his old self. But the fact that Raido was now banging his fists on the floor from laughing was not making him feel better.

"Did he crack a joke?" Genma asked and Raido only laughed even more. "I swear I don't get it." Genma said, and began to drag Raido to their office where they had paperwork to do.

"Man! Oh man!" Raido said, climbing on his chair and wiping tears off his eyes.

"What are you laughing at? I don't remember him saying anything funny! Other than the fact that he thought I was the one speaking and it's not even hilarious!" Genma said, rolling his eyes. "Did you get smashed last night? Or did you smoke something bad?"

"I don't s-smoke." Raido said and burst out laughing again. "He - he - " He laughed again. Genma did not get a word he said because he sounded like he was saying something along the lines of hee-hee-mwah-ha-ha-ha.

Genma grabbed a blank scroll and flung it towards Raido. "Stop it!"

"S-Sorry." Raido said, sobering up a bit. "But - he - he was looking at your package! And then he was blushing!"

Genma raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny? I'm sure he has one too."

"Don't you get it? I swear you're blind!" Raido said, grinning. "He likes you! Go talk to him!"

"No he doesn't!" Genma snapped. "Shut up Raido. It's not funny anymore."

Raido cleared his throat and almost suddenly, he was serious. "Go Genma. Just give him one more chance. You won't lose anything."

"I'm already hurt." Genma said.

"Just talk to him, please?" Raido said. "Who knows, maybe the hurt will go away." Raido pointed at the door. "I'll buy you lunch for two months. And then we can get smashed tonight. My treat. But just talk to him. I'll bet he'll stammer and stutter like he always does."

Genma stood up and headed for the door. What did he have to lose anyway?

XXX

Iruka stirred his bowl of ramen, randomly poking the fish cakes. He remembered looking at Genma and his thing. His mind began to scream the name _Sharpie_ over and over again, and he blushed. Narrowing his eyes, he began to scoop the noodles into his mouth in a speed that could rival Naruto's and waved his hand to order for another one while picking the last remains of noodles from his current bowl. He downed the hot broth in one go and began to attack his next bowl with more gusto. He was so hungry that even the ramen stand owner was looking at him with amusement.

"One more!" He said with his mouth full and continued eating like there was no tomorrow. He was on his seventh bowl when a voice rang out behind him.

"Slow down. You'll choke."

Sure enough, he did choke. He downed the glass of water beside him and began to rub his chest. "Four for take out please! Two beef, one chicken and one miso!" Iruka said in an almost shouting manner. He turned around and found himself blushing at the sight of Genma standing in front of him, hands in his pockets. His face went the shade of a lobster, as he began to smile sheepishly. "Sh-Shiranui-san! W-What a pleasant s-surprise. Would y-you like s-some ramen?"

Genma frowned a bit. "No thank you. I'm not really hungry."

"Oh. That's a s-shame." He said, collecting the plastic bags from the counter and paying the bill. "I'm going h-home. See you a-around." Iruka waved and exited the ramen joint.

Genma stood there, feeling a bit numb. Raido was right. Iruka did stutter. He looked up and found the ramen joint owner jerking a finger towards Iruka. Genma merely chuckled and left, jogging after Iruka.

"Iruka! Wait!" Iruka stopped and turned, looking at Genma. He suddenly blushed as they stood within each other's arm's reach. He stared at Iruka for a while before he spoke. "I don't want to be alone anymore." Iruka stared at the ground blushing. "I am saying this, because I have nothing to lose. In either way, I'm in a dead end. But at least, I told you. And I don't regret it."

Iruka blushed even more. "I'm sorry." Genma closed his eyes as he felt hurt consume him again. He was secretly hoping that Iruka would accept him. Or maybe Iruka just wasn't into men. Still, a part of him hoped. "Please forgive me." Iruka said, dipped his head in a bow and ran the opposite direction, away from Genma.

Away from everything.

TBC

Two more chapters to go!

Wah!

Me ish thinking in writing a Yondaime/Iruka fic. He, he!


	17. Part 17 Hearing it

Beta-read by V-chan aka b4k4-girl. Sankyuu na!

Answers to reviews and explanation to a sudden turn is at the bottom! Read FIRST before even saying anything about chapter being shite! There's a reason for the switch!

A special thank you to Kagaya who gave me a wonderful suggestion on how to make Gen and Iru get together! Mwah! I love you! So this chapter is dedicated to you!

Enjoy everyone!

**FAINT 17**

In the warm confines of Iruka's neat apartment, he sat stiffly on his couch, staring at the shiny surface of his coffee table. He'd been staring at it for a very long time, feeling like his heart was tied to a horse chariot and as if he was in a nightclub, because of the loud roaring and thumping sound ringing in his ears. His cheeks were hot and red, and his hands were shaking. He could feel the slight formation of sweat drops on his neck and temple.

Genma's words were still ringing in his ears.

_"I don't want to be alone anymore."_

Iruka shakily got to his feet and padded to the bathroom. The loud pitter-patter of rain began to fall from the sky, hitting the roof of his apartment. It was like a loud beating drum, a continuous ecstatic rhythm that matched the pace of his beating and afraid heart. He splashed his face and neck with water and dried it with a towel. He stared at his reflection for a while, taking note of his tired look and how wrinkles were starting to form on his forehead and the corner of his eyes.

He was stressed to breaking point.

He gave himself a sad smile. What would Naruto think of him if he saw how he looked right now? A mere ghost of the old lively schoolteacher? Naruto would drag him to the Ichiraku and stuff ramen down his throat, then he would buy him something nice (much to Iruka's surprise) and then drag him to the Hokage mountain carvings and remind him to stop overworking himself and to relax.

"But Naruto's not here." Iruka whispered sadly. "I don't have anyone here."

Then he remembered.

So he left his apartment and ran down the wet path, rainwater drenching him as he headed for the cenotaph.

XXX

Genma opened the fridge and took out another sandwich. He normally did _not_ eat _all_ of his sandwiches in one day flat, but he shrugged it off. They say you tend to eat a lot after a heartbreak and that is what exactly he was doing.

Eating his sandwiches.

"Hmm. Tuna ain't bad. Maybe I'll order more of those from her." He grumbled biting into the soft bread. He was wearing his Jounin pant uniform, his turtleneck, flak jacket and sandals tossed about in his room. He was prancing about shirtless in his little apartment, a bit cold from the rainy weather. But he didn't care. He tossed the wrapper of the sixth sandwich he'd eaten in a row and reached for the fridge to have another one. "Hmm. Pickle flavor. Okay." He got rid of the wrapper and was about to take a bite when he heard a knock on his front door. "Tsk. Better not be Raido." He padded for the front door, leaving his sandwich on the kitchen counter and pulled the door open. He blinked at the person standing in his doorway.

"Yo!" Raido greeted.

"Somehow I had a gut wrenching feeling that it would be you." Genma said, opening the door wider for his friend.

"That's sweet!" Raido teased, folding his wet umbrella and leaving it outside the apartment door and taking his sandals off.

"Tea or coffee?" Genma asked.

"Got any hot chocolate?" Raido asked, stretching a bit.

"I think so. Have a seat." Genma gestured towards the couches in his living room.

Genma went to prepare two cups of hot chocolate, munching on yet another sandwich from his fridge as he waited for the water to boil. He carefully mixed the powder and water together before carrying the two mugs out in the living room.

"Ah! Smells good." Raido said, taking a good whiff of the chocolate concoction.

"Yeah, yeah." Genma mumbled, blowing gently into his mug.

The silence went on for a few minutes before Raido set his mug down and looked at Genma seriously. "So, what happened?" Genma looked up from his cup blankly. "Don't give me that look! You know what I'm talking about! What happened with Iruka? What did you say? So are you guys an item now? Well? Spill!" Genma parted his lips to speak but his eyes dropped back to the mug in his hands. Raido frowned. As Genma's best friend, he swore that he never saw that kind of look on Genma's face _ever_. "Genma?" He asked slowly. Then it dawned on Raido. "Damn."

Genma set his cup down and stood up, walking towards his living room window and staring at the empty street below. His gaze shifted back to the raindrops trickling down the glass of his window. He could vaguely see his reflection in the glass, and it made him look like he was crying because of the dripping raindrops.

"Raido." He whispered, closing his eyes. "I'm going to the bar. You coming?"

Raido stared at the lithe back of his friend. Genma had dipped his head a bit and his shoulders were slightly trembling. Raido understood and a sad look glazed his face because of the state of his friend. "Yeah. Sure."

XXX

Genma leaned against his chair, staring at the piles of paperwork on his desk. He had had a horrible morning. First of all, he woke naked and had no clue as to why he was so. That and he reeked of alcohol. He had to spend about an hour in the shower trying to get the smell off him. He didn't know how much alcohol he got into his system the other night, but he was sure it was more than a few cups because his head was pounding.

Now, hours later, he couldn't bring himself to just do work. It was a good thing he didn't have a mission to do. Missions seemed to be on the sloping side lately, maybe it was because of the bad weather. Genma wasn't sure about the weather thing. Maybe missions are being held back again and being given to higher ranked ninjas, like ANBU.

"Hell." Genma sighed, tilting his head back.

The door slid open and Anko stepped in. "Hello, _Shiranui-san_!"

Genma threw Anko a glare. "If you're here to give me a headache, you're wasting your time."

"No, no. Nothing like that." Anko said, pushing aside a stack of folders and sitting on the desk, crossing her legs. "So, what's up, lover boy?" Genma threw her a dirty look. "Come now! I left Iruka to you! Well, how's the love going?" Genma banged his fist on the table.

"Anko!" He hissed, about to berate her for even speaking of such a thing when footsteps down the hallway reached his ears. He gained control of his temper, and sighed, rubbing his temples.

Anko shook her head. "Look, why don't you join me for dinner tonight. It'll help you forget things." To say that Genma was surprised was a gentle way of putting it. His eyes were so wide that they surely should have popped out. "Hmm? My treat. Look, I know I've done a lot of teasing, but hey, even someone like you don't deserve to feel this way. We'll have dinner, some sake, maybe even do some karaoke. It'll be fun. What do you say?" The door slid open as the footsteps stopped, and Iruka stepped in, some scrolls in his arms. Anko gave him a brief look before turning back to Genma. "It's a date, hmm? I'll swing by your place. The restaurant I have in mind is near your area anyway." Anko dropped a kiss on Genma's cheek. "Later." Anko passed by Iruka who was looking at the floors, feet glued to the floor and leg muscles unable to function in order to leave the room. "Yo! Iruka! Things okay?"

Iruka swallowed rather difficultly and nodded. "Yes, Anko-san. Everything is fine, thank you."

"Good! Good! Have a nice day!" Anko waved and shut the door behind her, walking down the hall, singing an old folk tune.

Genma had followed Anko's figure as she left his side, but somewhere in the middle of looking, his eyes fell on Iruka, and almost immediately, his eyes glazed with desire and need that it seems to burn a brighter golden hue than the normal honey-brown color. Iruka approached his desk and gently placed the scrolls before him.

"H-Hokage-sama told me that you're in charge of filing reports this w-week." Iruka said, trying to smile but failing miserably. "H-Here are m-my mission reports -"

"Iruka -" Genma began to speak, but Iruka's soft voice cut him off.

"P-Please take care of it." Iruka managed to say, his voice fading in to a whisper. He stepped away from the desk and dipped his head in a bow. "Good day, G-Genma."

Iruka all but ran out of the door, sliding it shut with an unintended slam before rushing down the hallway. Genma could feel his ribs being hit by his racing heart and his mind work overtime from the excessive thoughts that hit him at that very moment.

_Since when did Iruka call me by first name?_

XXX

Iruka found himself in front of the cenotaph, staring at the shiny marble stone and the names carved on it. He spent the entire night kneeling in front of it the other day, praying over and over again until his throat began to ache. Now, feeling lost, he found himself kneeling in front of it once more, hands on his face.

"I love him." He looked at the cenotaph. "Do you understand? I love him! And now I -" He gripped his hair by his scalp and bent forward, little shaking sobs escaping his mouth. "I've lost. I've lost everything!" He bit his lower lip to stop himself from crying out loud and ended up splitting the already delicate skin of his lip. The coppery taste filled his mouth and he let out a shaking quiet sob. "I'm scared." He dropped his hands to wrap his arms around himself, staring helplessly at the cenotaph. He closed his eyes, and parted his lips as little quiet sniffs escaped the parted and red-stained lips. He couldn't bear the idea of Genma with someone else. It felt selfish somehow, but it hurt too. "Because I love him."

Silence passed, save for the quiet wind blowing, ruffling his hair and beating against his weakened frame. Spending an entire night in the rain kneeling before the cenotaph was taking its toll. Stress just added to the whole topping, and Iruka was getting delirious by the second. In seconds, memories of his time spent with Genma flooded his mind and it only increased the aching he felt inside, to have had a chance to be loved by someone only to lose that person because of his own fear.

"Why don't you say it to my face?" Iruka stiffened at the very familiar voice that he knew and recognized. He almost did not want to turn. "Iruka?"

"W-What are y-you doing here?" Iruka managed to say in a whispered tone, because his voice shaking so badly.

"You _never_ call me by my first name. _Never_." Genma said.

"You followed me." Iruka mumbled, more to himself that to Genma. Iruka did not move from his knelt position, and continued to stare blankly at his parents' names on the cenotaph. A distant crack of lighting echoed in the sky, dark clouds getting heavy. Genma didn't say anything anymore, but remained standing a good eight feet behind Iruka, watching the slumped shoulders.

"I need to know." Genma said. "Look at me." He said softly, and surprisingly, Iruka obeyed. He slowly got to his feet and looked up, tears very visible on his cheeks. "Iruka." Genma found himself staring at the tears.

"I love you, Genma." Iruka shook his head, looking away. "Please don't let my feelings stop you from going out with A-" Iruka found himself enveloped in Genma's arms, the musky smell that he clearly remembered surrounding him. Warmth tickled his bones and somehow he didn't feel lost or alone anymore.

"That's all I needed to hear, Iruka." Genma whispered, holding him tighter. "That's all I needed to hear."

XXX

Genma took Iruka to his house, and made him sit on the couch, while he went to prepare something warm for him to drink. Genma first noticed at how much Iruka seemed to have aged in less than a year, and how some of his glow began to fade. He knew Naruto meant a lot to Iruka, but he was _not_ expecting it to be this much. For a brief moment, he felt bitter towards Naruto for causing such effects on Iruka, but he reminded himself that even the boy had had a hard life and that his decisions should be respected. Genma did respect Naruto, he just wasn't very happy at the moment because Iruka was getting weak.

He found himself chuckling to himself as he poured some hot water into the tea mixture before stirring it. He shook his head, his hair free from the hold of his forehead protector made into a bandana. He picked the mug up and headed for the living room, to where Iruka was sitting on the couch.

"Here's your tea -" Genma stopped short when he found Iruka leaning against the armrest of his couch, eyes closed and lips slightly parted, fast asleep. He set the mug on the table and knelt before Iruka, gently lifting him up and carrying him to his bedroom. He placed him on the bed, pulled the shirt and flak jacket off and covered him with the blanket. He was about to leave but caught sight of the red healing cut on Iruka's lower lip and gently caressed the cut with his thumb. "Sleep well." He whispered and left Iruka in the room to get the much-deserved sleep he had needed for a long time.

XXX

Iruka didn't wake up till twelve hours later, in the ungodly time of three AM. He shifted in the bed, snuggling deeper in to the fluffy pillow and warm blanket before his mind kicked in to gear and he remembered falling asleep on a couch and not in a nice soft bed with the that soft and wonderful scent around him. He cracked an eye open and found a familiar wall that he remembered seeing before. He cracked his other eye open and sat himself on the bed, looking at the neat room with caution before realizing.

"Genma." He immediately got to his feet and stared at his bare chest, blushing a bright shade of red. Genma _always_ took care of him and made sure he was not uncomfortable. But still, the blush refused to leave his cheeks. In some sick twisted way, he remembered his dream and _Sharpie._

Iruka shook his head and silently made his way to the door, cracked it open and peeped in to the hallway. He found the house dim due to the light glowing from the kitchen and like bee to a flower, he made his way to the kitchen. He found Genma sitting on a stool, arms folded on the counter and head resting on top of it. Iruka felt his blush become more intense because Genma was wearing a pair of old cotton gray pants. The same pants he found himself wearing the first time he woke up in Genma's house after a heavy fever. And the thing that he didn't like about that pair of pants was that it was a bit see through and by the light of heaven, he could see his -

Iruka blushed even more when he remembered his _Sharpie Dream_, as his mind hideously dubbed it. He debated whether he should wake Genma up, but before he could even make a decision, Genma shifted and sat straight up.

"Been watching me, haven't you?" He said, yawning and rubbing a sleepy eye.

"Sorry. I - I found you here and well, you see, I was - well, I went to - in fact I was about to - "

Genma chuckled and turned, sliding off the stool and standing before Iruka, shirtless, beautiful and - Iruka shook his head and blushed some more. "You're so cute when you're rattled."

"I'm not rattled!" Iruka said stubbornly.

"Of course not." Genma answered and placed a gentle kiss on Iruka's shoulder before walking out of the kitchen towards the bathroom. Iruka padded back to the bedroom and sat on the bed, holding one of the fluffy pillows in his lap and staring at the parquet floor. He was aware of Genma leaving the bathroom, but he did not expect to look up and find himself looking at his _thingy_ behind soft cotton pants. The blushing effect came immediately and Iruka found himself giving a little squeak and looking away. "So are you going to tell me?"

"Tell you what?" Iruka said, backing up against the headboard.

"Why you react like this at the sight of me." Genma said, climbing on the bed and crawling on top of Iruka until he had his hands on either side of the Chuunin's head. "Why you blush and squeak when you see me up close. Not that I'm complaining because I find it down right adorable. But I'm just curious."

"I don't do any of those things!" Iruka said.

"Oh yes you do." Genma said, nodding. "For instance, if I do this," Genma straddled Iruka's hips and ground his own against it. Iruka gave out a very loud yelp and blushed so red that Genma thought it was a new shade. "See?" Iruka blushed some more. "So are you going to tell me?"

Iruka swallowed difficultly and looked somewhere else other than Genma himself. The feeling of Genma on top of him, straddling him and wearing nothing but cotton pants was making him very uncomfortable. "Well, you see, I - I had this d-dream."

Silence.

"And?" Genma said, after several minutes of silence passed.

"In this dream, y-you w-were n-naked and well, youandIwereabouttohavesex." Iruka said quickly.

"What?" Genma asked, face twisting because he didn't understand what Iruka just said. "Mind saying that a bit slower?" Iruka promptly refused to open his mouth. "How will I understand if you don't speak properly?" Genma said, giving him the I'm-a-helpless-child-please-help-me-out look.

"I said you and I were about to have sex." Iruka managed to cough out and Genma suddenly grinned that Iruka debated on jumping out the window or locking himself in the closet, whichever one was easier.

"You dreamt of sex even before you admitted you loved me?" Genma said, grin growing bigger that Iruka wondered if Gai's grin could stretch this much.

"Well, you see, I think I loved you before that too." Iruka said shyly, blushing some more.

Genma chuckled. "Then what happened? I'm all ears." He lay on top of Iruka, folding both his hands on Iruka's chest and propping his chin on top of it, staring directly in to Iruka's dark eyes.

"Uh - well, I - umm - I called your thingy Sharpie." Iruka said.

Genma blinked. "Come again?"

"I called your thingy S-Sharpie." Iruka repeated, now trying in vain to wiggle out from under Genma's figure. "G-Genma, you're heavy." He whined.

"You called my thing Sharpie?" Genma asked, disbelieving. "Okay, so what other things did you call me when we had sex?" Iruka blushed and covered his face with his hands. "In your dream that is."

"N-Nothing." Iruka said, shaking his head.

"Liar." Genma said, peeling his hand away from his face. "There's more right?"

"It was big."

"How big?"

"Just big!" Iruka squeaked.

"Was it long?"

"Yes."

"And thick?"

"Yes! Stop asking already!"

"Did you like it?"

"I called it Sharpie!"

"Indeed you did. Did you like it?"

"Genma, you're heavy!"

"How long was I in your dream?"

"I didn't have a ruler beside me at that time!"

"You're a teacher, do a rough calculation." Genma shrugged.

"Excuse me?" Iruka blanched.

"Why won't you do it? Calculate I mean."

"Because I don't remember!"

"You have good memory! Of course you remember!"

"No I don't!"

Genma kissed his shoulder. "Yes you do! Now tell me."

"I don't remember Genma!"

"Why?"

"Because I was already begging you to fuck me senseless and because it felt so damn good! Happy?"

Genma grinned. "Want me to show you my thingy?"

"What?"

"My thingy. Sharpie I mean." Genma smiled and traced Iruka's scar with his finger.

"Genma!"

"Yes?"

"Stop it!"

"Stop what?" Genma asked, tracing his finger down Iruka's neck and rubbing at the soft flesh, causing Iruka to wiggle under him. "You were the one talking about sex and Sharpie."

"You asked!"

"Your dream!"

"This is not fair!"

"All is fair. Because you get to play Sharpie tonight." Genma said gleefully.

Iruka gasped and tried to wiggle out of Genma, the idea of the closet becoming very appealing. "It's three in the morning! How can you even think of sex and - damnit! You're heavy!"

"Admit it, you want me!" Genma bit his shoulder causing Iruka to cry out and buck under him, while he licked the bite. "Oh and just so you know," Genma pressed his lips against Iruka long and hard, pushing his tongue deep in to Iruka's mouth and shifting his legs so that he was more comfortable. "I love you." Genma whispered, breathing hard and lips raw and red from the kiss.

"I know." Iruka whispered. "Kiss me."

And Genma did.

And he did more than kiss him.

TBC

O.o That is - plain silly! 10 pages! OMG! Now I'm off to type the lemon! Wait for it, minna!

EXPLANATION TO 16:

Let's look at it this way - Iruka DOES like Genma. I mean, I didn't just write the previous chapters for nothing and there is absolutely NO WAY that after that incident in the hospital (Genma not wanting 2 see anyone - out of pride btw) that it is NOT obvious that Iruka is - well, smitten over Genma. But, here's what i think - Iruka is the type of person who tends to FORGET other things when it comes to Naruto, especially when it's about himself. So Genma, for now, is the shadow of Naruto's departure. That does NOT make him an irresponsible person, however. He just sometimes have a hard time accepting things when it comes to Naruto.

Hence, comes Raido's speech. His speech, let's say, is the ignition to Iruka's mind, which leads us to the dream. Now, I also think that Iruka is the type of person who wouldn't FORGET such a - hmmm - thing, especially when seeing Genma. Come on, dreaming about the person who you supposedly think of as friend in such a manner, and then facing him hours later after "ejaculation" isn't something I'd find Iruka to handle ... nicely. He's a nice guy, but he gets embarrassed easily. In this case, it's his mind doing the pointing out.

Iruka's mind: oh look! It's sharpie! go get him! real Iruka runs away, blushing like mad

Plus, I think they really like each other (see ALL previous chapters) but are just too either scared or prideful to admit to each other. So, umm … yah, that's my explanation. I know that I did change the "air of angst" in to - hmmm - humor? But that is how I wanted this fic to be and how I originally planned it out. A comedy-romance thing, and there is not a comedy-romance out there that does not involve a lil' angst. See "how 2 loose a guy in 10 days", "13 going on 30" and - well I forgot the titles. And it's not an excuse by the way. This is how I planned it. I was surprised and not surprised at the reader's comments.

As for this chapter, I like it! Wait, scratch that, I love it! It's probably the ONLY chapter that I can read and read again and again and not loose the grin on my face. Actually, I find this okay and quite believable. Genma being his teasing self (my excuse to that is that he spends too much time with a goofball like Raido) and Iruka being his shy and sweet self.

Now, to those hated the previous chapter, sorry. Umm … well, I guess that's your problem ne? I mean, I really can't do anything about it because everyone has different ways of thinking and tastes. So, I hope, that my little explanation above has somewhat clarified your doubts? If you call it doubts …

Answers to reviews (I was planning this for the last chapter, but oh well, here goes…)

Cdkobasiuk – Torture? Sorry, but well, sue me! I'm evil! Here's a filler though!

Midori – Iruka declining? Nah! He's just shy! points up See?

Can Hersey – Weee! I'm flattered! I'm such a review whore, really. Glad you're enjoying this. Acid hard yaoi coming right up (next chapter that is) and as for marrying you? No thanks, I'm taken!

Yuen-chan – YonIru is something I want to try you see? I don't think there's any like it out there!

Mini-Kero – Well, actually, it's just one more chapter to go? dodges fury As for the dream, I think this chapter makes it obvious ne? ne? Yes, they are desperate! Oh whatever would Sharpie do? hugs

Izumi – I'm with Raido laughing all the way, sweetie! v

Polka dot – Genma as an Uke? Hmmmm – I'll keep that in mind! A wriggling, screaming and BOTTOM Genma – Now that's eye candy, ne? Surely, Iruka wouldn't mind!

Evil Kasumi – Errrm pats pats I think my explanation up there covers up most of your uh … can't say questions coz they're not questions. But oh you know what I mean, ne? Him going in to school girl mode is just – well, oh I don't know. I guess I found it amusing. Plus, Raido seems to be getting a kick out of it. I really, really don't see how it's out of place. I mean, Iruka can switch from mad to happy and happy to pissed off in seconds – see interactions with Naruto in manga/anime – or so it seems. Since there is not much info on him in the manga/anime, I just had to make a few assumptions and compensate. It is fan fiction after all. Well, here's the next chapter anyway! Hope you enjoyed it! hugs

Riyo-sama – If it's the lemon, then yes, I'm an evil person and keeps nice sweet (or sour) things for the end. But they're together now ne? points up

Pewp – I have nothing to say really. Whether you enjoyed the fic or not is entirely up to you. Though I still find it amusing that you bothered to leave a comment. I couldn't help but giggle!

SexySiriusBlack – Ummm, Iruka apologizes because he _does not know what_ to say. Apology seems to be the next best thing it seems. I don't think he flogges his log either laughs like a maniac Although a sick part of my mind is telling me that it would be _very_ amusing to see THAT! There really isn't much explaining to do I'm afraid. I actually wanted this to be more of a figure-it-out thingy. But oh well, I do hope that this chapter clarified things. Looks like you don't have to worry about this fic not finishing before October 11 ne? (Did I get the date right?)

Chichai-raion – Sharpie is actually a pen marker brand. Got the idea from it really. I'm still thinking of YonIru. Just not sure how to start it at the mo'. One more chapter to go liao!

Kamikakushi – Wah! I'm flattered! I really go floating in the sky when people enjoy my works! hugs Jumped a bit – maybe. Ah, well, it was necessary. Genma is prone to rejection indeed, but a funny thing is that Iruka _never_ really rejected him. Kinda'. YonIru is a bit beyond the border isn't it? But that is why I want to try it! It's a challenge to pull it off ne?

Toki Mirage – Errr…I did write it at the bottom of my story dear. YonIru is being pondered upon! And here's the update! One more chapter to go! Weeeeee!

Blahsih – Ah, glad you enjoyed it! I'm giving YonIru a shot, but well, it's going to be kinda' difficult to pull it off, but I'm willing to give it a try!

Isolde – Here's mooooooooooore! For some reason, reading your review reminded me of the Pepsi Ad! No more withdrawal symptoms I hope.

Dragon101 – Updated and running! And they are already together! Looks like you got what you want ne?

Chibified Kitsunes – Aren't we all jealous of Iruka! Playing with Sharpie like that! You silly man you! Oh! Hope you enjoyed this!

Renn – Ah, you'll be seeing more Sharpies in the next chapter. I hope I didn't cause you any trauma O.o hugs

EscagirlUK – Errr…if anyone has to die of over-angst, that should be Sasuke. And Naruto was really thinking of running away. And he did runaway. The whole him having a crush on somebody was just Iruka's guess. This fic is actually a side-story to my other fic WHY NOT which has KakaNaru in it. Basically, that's Naruto's side of the story! Here's an update!

O.o Phew! That looked … a lot!

Oh well, one hardcore lemon coming up! So, how many rounds of sex should there be? One or two? Your pick!

Toodles!


	18. Part 18 Loving you

This chapter contains two lemons. One right at the beginning and one somewhere in the middle. But this posted chapter here, is the non-lemon version. For the complete version, go to my profile and get the link from there or visit my homepage.

I know someone said 1 lemon scene, another said 3 and another said 9 (Sexy Sirius Black, we think along the same lines! Hello, comrade!). But, as much as I think that Genma and Iruka should be doing sex everyday non-stop, even I cannot write nine lemons in one go. That would be … fatal for me. In either case, I settled for a middle ground between 1 and 3, so now we have 2! Weeeeee! I tried to be as creative as possible, but well, you can't get very creative when it comes to lemons ne? But I try.

Nosebleed warning.

Enjoy!

TO ARCHEEKA – Uh, I had to replace this chapter after posting it the first time, because I didn't check my review count. Can I just ogle for a while? That is the longest review EVER! And, you printed THIS???? Can I just drop now? Ahem, I do _know_ that Raido and Genma are grown men. I do know that "thingy" is a childish thing. But that's the point isn't it? I find Raido (for the lack of info in the manga/anime) a fun and teasing man, who can act VERY childish in his, well, good mood (think Shuichi in Gravitation). I don't know, maybe I'm being stupid or silly, but, I kept in mind that he couldn't form any coherent or _smart_ reply because he was _laughing_ so hard. So I guess it just kicked in as reflex. Sobered up or not, he was still feeling the pulls of laughter. But, I will take your suggestion to heart. No, I'm not angry. Just, surprised. A warning though. Part 18 does have mentions of _Sharpie_. If your imagination is as active as mine, then you can easily ignore it. Otherwise, well, just a warning. Don't want people hating my work. Thank you for that critic. I really, really appreciate it. And some of those terms to call a man's groin like "package" made me laugh SO hard! I'll keep that in mind. Oh, and this whole fic started because of the name "Sharpie" by the way. My cousins and I were fooling around and then, voila. One hour later, I had the first four chapters typed out. So, to me, that name is the root of this fic. Hope you enjoy the lemon. You've been warned!

FAINT 18 

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In the office the next morning, Raido was holding his hand out to Anko, who was grudgingly counting bills and placing it on the open palm.

"I told you! I told you! I told you my plan would work!" Raido said, almost dancing on his toes in joy as more bills were piled onto his palm.

"Yeah, yeah. All you did was tell me to go and make Genma think I like him so that Iruka would wake up! I did the work! Shouldn't you just get half of the bet?" Anko reasoned, not wanting to shed more money.

"Nope! You never believed it would work! Well, hah! You saw it yourself! Iruka entered Genma's apartment with him and _never_ _came out again_!" Raido clapped once in joy as he counted the bills he received.

"What makes you think they're having sex?" Anko asked.

"Oh believe me! They will be." Raido began to laugh like a maniac. He glanced at everyone in the office, which included Aoba, Gai, Kurenai, Asuma and Shizune. "You guys want to bet on it?"

A loud chorus. "NO!"

Raido continued laughing.

XXX

Iruka woke up at the unholy hour (according to him) of nine in the morning. He found himself staring right at Genma's sleeping face, and he smiled, remembering the other night's escapades. Gently brushing the hair out of Genma's face, he got off the bed, covered Genma with the blankets and padded to the bathroom. He took a spare towel from the rack and turned on the hot shower. He washed away the dried semen on his thighs and stomach, soaping himself clean till he was feeling refreshed.

Turning the knob off, he grabbed the towel and dried himself, before wrapping it around his waist and padding back into the room. His clothes were damp with sweat from their make out session the other night, and just remembering it made him blush. He shook his head and looked around. He hoped Genma didn't mind if he borrowed something for a while. He spotted a robe folded on the chair in the corner of the room and pulled it on. He wrapped the terry cloth robe around him tightly, not wanting to be exposed for the mean time. He ran a comb through his hair took the towel to hang in the balcony to dry before padding to the kitchen.

"Let's see." Iruka mumbled, and spotted the kettle. He began to boil some water, and as he waited for that to finish, he went about searching the cupboards for things to eat. He found some biscuits in one of the cupboards, along with a bottle of apricot jam and a sealed bottle of chocolate syrup. There was a can of tuna, which he ignored and a can of sweet corn, which he stared at for a moment before ignoring it completely. He opened the freezer and found some bacon still in its plastic package. He took one glance at the expiry date and tossed it in to the bin. He looked at the fridge and found a packet of frozen chicken nuggets, which he also threw away because it was already five months past their expiry date. The freezer was practically empty after he rummaged through it and the kitchen bin was already half full.

Sighing he looked at the bottom fridge door and found some eggs, a whole shelf with foil wrapped sandwiches, some pears that seemed fresh and crunchy, a new pack of toast, a packet of expired milk and a drawer full of rotting vegetables, it being cucumbers, tomatoes and a potato.

"Silly man. You're not supposed to put potatoes in the fridge." He mumbled and threw everything away. He tied the black plastic of the trash bin and sent one of his clones to throw it out. He sent another clone to fetch some breakfast from the nearest supermarket. A good ten minutes later, he was flipping pancakes and stacking them onto a plate. He was turning the burner off when arms snaked around his middle, the hands playing the opening of the robe.

"You look good in my clothes. Very sexy." Genma whispered, smelling soapy and clean from his shower.

"Good morning." Iruka greeted, and turned around, promptly kissing Genma senseless. Genma crushed him to his chest, kissing with equal fervor, as his hands began to get a bit naughty and began to cup Iruka's taut bottom. "Breakfast?"

Genma nipped at Iruka's neck. "What? You're not?"

Iruka laughed. "Come on." He led him to the kitchen table and sat him on a chair, placing a mug of warm coffee beside him. "I found some chocolate syrup in your cupboard." Iruka set a plate of pancakes before Genma who helped himself to some syrup.

"Oh, I love these." Genma said, and took a bite. "Hmm! But I think you're tastier."

Iruka blushed at the comment and teasing, and went about eating his own breakfast. While Genma wolfed his down, he took his time. He was sipping his coffee, minutes later when he heard Genma's chair scrape the tiled floors, and him carry his plate and mug to the kitchen sink. It surprised Iruka a lot when Genma took _his_ plate and _his_ mug and set them on the kitchen counter, promptly clearing up the table. Even the chocolate syrup was gone.

"Uh - do you have to be at work? I'm sorry, I -"

Iruka found himself pinned on the table, Genma above him, a jar of apricot jam in his hand. "Shush, Iruka. I'm not going to work today and neither are you."

Iruka was staring at the jam. "Oh."

"Raido will take care of things."

"Oh."

"He knows you're here."

"Oh?"

"In fact, he was the one who urged me to follow you. Last night."

"Oh!"

"He's a great friend." Genma smiled fondly. "Annoying, but one of a kind."

"Oh?"

"But anyway." Genma shrugged.

"What about Anko? Last night, weren't you two supposed to -"

"Raido told me to forget it and just follow you."

"Oh!"

"Let's see." Genma slowly unscrewed the lid of the jar and dipped his finger in. He was dressed in nothing but old Jounin pants that had a hole on one cheek of his butt and it looked like he wasn't wearing any underwear either. He pulled his finger out, licking the sweet jam and smiled. "I like jam. Especially apricots. Actually, I like raspberry better. But the store didn't have raspberry. Do you like jam?"

Iruka was staring at him stupidly, as he licked his finger and scooped some more from the jar, only to lick it away again. "Uh-huh." Iruka nodded.

"Good! Because, I'm going to share my jam with you." Genma said, taking two finger full in to his mouth and smiling down at Iruka, almost childlike and cute. He leaned closer and kissed Iruka, and _shared_ his jam with him. "I can share some more if you want?" Genma said, licking his lips.

"Put that mouth of yours to better use than talking!" Iruka growled.

"Oh, authoritative, are we?" Genma teased and got rid of the knot that held the robe closed and spread it open, running his eyes over Iruka's body, and smiled. "You sound very sexy, Iruka-_kun_." Genma reached out for a spoon and scooped jam on to Iruka's stomach, spreading it all over, while Iruka yelped at the cool jelly-like substance. "But as much as you turn me on, I don't take orders. Bad, bad Iruka! I should punish you." He chuckled and began to lick the jam off Iruka's stomach.

"Genma!" Iruka gasped, bucking under the skillful tongue that was licking him clean like a cat. "I just took a shower!"

"I don't hear you complaining." Genma said in a singsong voice, and toed a chair over. He unzipped his pants and sat on the chair, gathering Iruka in his lap, while he pushed the robe off completely. "You're so beautiful." Iruka blushed. "I can't help but feel so incredibly lucky. You're smart, you're sexy, you're hot and boy, have you got one hell of a tongue!"

"Genma!"

"Hmmm! Just remembering you last night, hmmm!" Genma closed his eyes as he spread some jam on Iruka's throat with his finger. "You know what I mean, love?"

Iruka blushed. Genma was such a romantic. "Genma, it's broad daylight. We're in a town filled with nosy ninjas and the curtains aren't even closed!"

"So what?" Genma whispered, running his tongue up Iruka's throat to his chin. "Let them see."

"Genma!"

"Hey, it's free porn."

"What the - "

"But I love you! I do this, because I love you so, so, so much! I can't get enough of you." Genma whispered, now sucking at his Adam's apple, that he so loved for some reason. "So, to me, it's not just sex. It's just you! Being with you." His voice dropped to a husky tone. "Feeling you."

Iruka swallowed, and grabbed onto Genma's shoulders as Genma shifted to a more comfortable sitting position. "Genma, I -"

"I love you. Don't forget that." Genma kissed him gently, softly. "Don't ever forget that, okay?"

Iruka smiled. "I won't."

Genma grinned. "Good. Kiss me."

Iruka obeyed.

XXX

It took a month before Genma moved in with Iruka. The news spread like wildfire amongst the office staff, and everyone, especially Raido, was very happy for Genma and Iruka. It was practically glowing in Genma's face that he loved Iruka to bits whenever Iruka's name was mentioned. And vice versa for Iruka.

Raido couldn't forget the one time when a student called Rika gave Iruka a daisy during valentines day.

_"Iruka-sensei, here's flower for you."_

_"Thank you Rika."_

_"Iruka-sensei doesn't get any flowers from Genma-sensei?" _

_"Oh, Genma-sensei does give flowers still. Not all the time though." Iruka laughed nervously._

_"You look happy, Iruka-sensei. Genma-sensei makes you happy, ne?_

_"Well, that's something." Iruka laughed nervously again, not sure how to handle the child before him._

_"That's good! Iruka-sensei is not lonely anymore! And you look younger now!" Rika giggled and waved good bye to Iruka as she ran out of the Academy gates to her waiting mother._

_"Hey, what do you mean younger! I'm twenty-five!" Iruka suddenly snapped, huffing._

Raido couldn't stop laughing after that day. Every time he remembered it, he would laugh so hard, tears would trickle down his cheeks. Iruka still worried about Naruto and no matter how many times Genma told him, he still looked for him during his missions. Raido once told his friend that he had to respect Iruka's love for Naruto and Iruka was not the type to give up easily and in time, Genma did and at the most, he accompanied Iruka on his missions.

There were times when Iruka would cry and Genma would hold him. There were times when Iruka would feel sick and Genma would take care of him. But Genma never complained and continued to give Iruka his undying support and love. Raido would sometimes laugh at how the relationship started, all because of a pot of hot coffee. Now, watching Genma and Iruka walk down the street, side by side, after coming home from a mission, he couldn't help but smile as he walked down the opposite way to his own home.

And he chuckled during his walk, because for the first time in a long time, he was felt truly happy for Genma and Iruka. "Looks like the cheesy saying is true after all. True love spawns from the silliest things."

In Iruka and Genma's case, it was the pitcher of coffee.

FIN

Wah! Done! Good-bye dear _FAINT_.

I want to thank EVERYONE who came this far and enjoyed this fic! Wow! 300 reviews! And on a new pairing! is getting teary eyed I am so happy! I'd like to extend my thanks to my lovely, lovely, sweet and uber cool beta-reader V-chan (b4k4-girl) and Kagaya! You guys, mwah! The best!

And to all you guys, you know who you are! I love you! Really, I do! Here, have some popcorn! gives popcorn I love popcorn … cough … ahem … I mean, I've enjoyed writing this fic! Maybe I'll write some GenIru one shots in the future again. I hope that the pairing becomes popular, and I hope others would write about them too.

Thank you minna! hugs Will miss you guys!

Till next time we meet! Ja!


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